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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: ground · lie · stick · bear · shower · wind · toast · drill

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. ground — crushed
  3. shower — to wash
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. shower — rain
  8. bear — the animal
  9. drill — army training
  10. ground — a position
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bear — the animal
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. wind — moving air
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. toast — bread
  18. ground — the earth
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. lie — to recline
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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