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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: object · shower · rush · bark · bulb · degree · pop · wind

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. bulb — for light
  6. shower — to wash
  7. pop — soda
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. object — a thing
  12. pop — music
  13. object — an aim
  14. object — to protest
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pop — to visit
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bark — to shout

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