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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: cold · temple · tear · mug · scale · charge · present · shower

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. mug — a cup
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — the time now
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. present — there
  8. tear — from crying
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. charge — electricity
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. scale — in music
  14. cold — not warm
  15. shower — to wash
  16. charge — a price
  17. cold — an illness
  18. mug — to rob
  19. tear — from crying
  20. scale — size or range
  21. mug — a face
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. tear — to rip
  24. charge — in control

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