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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: snap · temple · last · roll · shower · can · wave · tear

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. tear — from crying
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. last — finally
  5. last — to go on
  6. can — to be able to
  7. snap — to click
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — a list
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. can — a tin
  17. shower — to wash
  18. can — a tin
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. shower — rain
  23. last — final
  24. wave — of the sea

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