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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 116 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: rush · land · wind · ground · snap · bay · shower · march

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to click
  4. shower — rain
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. ground — a position
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. land — ground
  9. march — the month
  10. land — to come down
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rush — hurry
  13. ground — crushed
  14. land — a country
  15. wind — moving air
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. march — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. march — the month
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. ground — the earth
  24. wind — to turn a key

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