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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: shower · rock · field · land · tear · safe · wind · rush

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. tear — from crying
  5. land — to come down
  6. tear — from crying
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. wind — moving air
  9. field — for sport
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. land — ground
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. rush — hurry
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. tear — to rip
  19. shower — rain
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. rock — music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rush — to hurry

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