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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: date · cell · wind · stand · bear · shower

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. date — the fruit
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. bear — the animal
  7. shower — to wash
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. cell — in biology
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. shower — rain
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cell — a phone
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. date — on the calendar

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