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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: nail · race · shower · present · ball · tear

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. tear — from crying
  3. shower — to wash
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. tear — to rip
  6. race — a contest
  7. tear — from crying
  8. shower — rain
  9. race — humankind
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — there
  14. ball — a great time
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. race — the arms race
  17. ball — a dance
  18. present — a gift

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