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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: kick · bore · rash · tube · bear · tear · face · shower

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. face — part of the head
  5. shower — rain
  6. rash — a series
  7. bore — to tire
  8. face — to point toward
  9. kick — in football
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. tube — a container
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. bear — the animal
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. tear — to rip
  20. shower — to wash
  21. face — to confront
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. rash — hasty

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