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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 120 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 · mug · lean · rock · wake · cold · board · saw

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rock — music
  4. wake — a trail
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. saw — the tool
  7. mug — a cup
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. mug — a face
  11. rock — a stone
  12. lean — thin
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cold — not warm
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. lean — to bend
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a committee
  23. shower — rain
  24. cold — an illness

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