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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · pop · plane · cell · snap · spring · racket · lean

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. snap — to click
  3. plane — a tool
  4. cell — in biology
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. lean — thin
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pop — to visit
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. lean — to bend
  15. cell — a phone
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. shower — to wash
  21. pop — music
  22. spring — a coil
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. pop — soda

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