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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. wake — a trail
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. file — a line of people
  8. degree — from a university
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. fall — the season
  11. race — a contest
  12. file — a tool
  13. shower — rain
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. fall — to drop
  16. file — a document
  17. race — the arms race
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. race — humankind
  24. shower — to wash

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