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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: firm · lie · shower · band · tear · cold · squash · suit

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. squash — the sport
  6. firm — steady
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a ring
  9. firm — a company
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. suit — in cards
  12. tear — from crying
  13. band — a music group
  14. suit — clothes
  15. squash — to crush
  16. firm — decided
  17. suit — to fit
  18. tear — to rip
  19. shower — rain
  20. tear — from crying
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — to wash
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. lie — an untruth

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