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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: hide · stock · cabinet · shower · kid · pound · row · bear

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. stock — goods
  7. shower — rain
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. kid — to tease
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. row — to paddle
  15. kid — child
  16. pound — a weight
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bear — the animal
  19. stock — shares
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — a line
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. shower — to wash
  24. hide — animal skin

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