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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. ball — a great time
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. foot — a measure
  7. spring — the season
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. shower — to wash
  11. spring — of water
  12. wind — moving air
  13. band — a ring
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. ball — a dance
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. shower — rain
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. band — a music group

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