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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fall — the season
  6. lean — to bend
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. current — happening now
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. current — electric
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. fall — to drop
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. lean — thin
  18. current — of water
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. shower — to wash
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. fall — to drop
  24. shower — rain

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