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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 116 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: suit · cold · shower · hand · ball · spring · net · calf

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. suit — in cards
  7. net — for catching
  8. cold — not warm
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. ball — a dance
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. cold — an illness
  13. suit — clothes
  14. net — after costs
  15. shower — rain
  16. hand — in cards
  17. net — in sport
  18. hand — help
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. ball — a great time
  21. suit — to fit
  22. shower — to wash
  23. spring — the season
  24. cold — the Cold War

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