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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 120 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: nail · mine · snap · lash · cabinet · chest · season · shower

  1. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. shower — rain
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. season — in sport
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. season — of the year
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. snap — to click
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. mine — for digging
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. shower — to wash

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