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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 124 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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. shower — to wash
  3. tear — to rip
  4. spring — a coil
  5. tear — from crying
  6. staff — employees
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. spring — the season
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — to sink
  16. shower — rain
  17. staff — a stick
  18. staff — employees
  19. spring — of water
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. lean — to bend
  22. kick — in football
  23. lean — thin
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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