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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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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: shower · mouse · lean · bark · wind · swing · drill · season

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. swing — music
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. shower — rain
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lean — thin
  8. drill — army training
  9. lean — to bend
  10. wind — moving air
  11. season — in sport
  12. swing — to play on
  13. season — of the year
  14. wind — moving air
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. drill — the tool
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bark — to shout
  24. drill — a practice

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