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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. tear — to rip
  3. rush — hurry
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. board — to get on
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. board — a committee
  9. mark — a grade
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mark — a trace
  13. tear — from crying
  14. capital — money
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. shower — rain
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. tear — from crying
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — a division
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. capital — a city

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com