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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 116 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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Word bank
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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: wave · bowl · spring · sharp · cap · shower · trunk · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. sharp — clever
  3. shower — rain
  4. cap — a lid
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. game — a match
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. cap — of ice
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. spring — of water
  15. cap — a hat
  16. spring — the season
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. spring — a coil
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. sharp — with an edge

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