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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 120 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: shower · hide · branch · mark · coach · land · mine · mouse

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. land — a country
  6. shower — to wash
  7. mark — a trace
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. branch — a division
  14. mark — a grade
  15. land — to come down
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. shower — rain
  19. mine — for digging
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. land — ground
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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