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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: fall · shower · key · lash · toast · lie · wind · stock

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  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. wind — moving air
  2. toast — bread
  3. key — for a lock
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stock — shares
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. stock — goods
  12. wind — moving air
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. shower — rain
  15. key — the most important part
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. key — in music
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. lie — to recline
  23. shower — to wash
  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