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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: straw · wave · hide · shower · ball · net · mark · cold

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. net — in sport
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. mark — a grade
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. shower — to wash
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. net — for catching
  12. cold — not warm
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. net — after costs
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. mark — a trace
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. shower — rain
  22. ball — a dance
  23. cold — an illness
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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