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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. present — the time now
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. shower — rain
  7. spell — a short time
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. row — a line
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. present — a gift
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — to paddle
  18. board — a committee
  19. spell — magic
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. spell — letters
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. shower — to wash
  24. board — to get on

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