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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: shower · wave · race · pit · cabinet · bear

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. shower — rain
  4. pit — in a race
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. shower — to wash
  7. race — humankind
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bear — the animal
  11. race — a contest
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. race — the arms race

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