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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: rush · shower · cue · rest · bound · spell · kid · stick

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bound — certain
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. cue — a signal
  7. kid — child
  8. spell — letters
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bound — tied together
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. cue — a hint
  16. spell — magic
  17. rest — a break
  18. rest — what's left
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. rush — hurry
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. spell — a short time
  24. cue — for pool

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