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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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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: kid · key · fan · bulb · shower · season · straw · bore

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. kid — child
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. key — in music
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. season — in sport
  10. shower — rain
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. key — the most important part
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bulb — for light
  21. shower — to wash
  22. season — of the year
  23. bore — to drill
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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