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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a hint
  5. field — for sport
  6. bulb — for light
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. mark — a trace
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. cue — a signal
  15. field — a subject
  16. mark — a grade
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bulb — for light
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. shower — rain
  21. tear — from crying
  22. field — farmland
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mark — to pay attention

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