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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: safe · pitcher · field · cabinet · snap · hide · shower · bark

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. shower — rain
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bark — to shout
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. field — farmland
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. field — for sport
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. field — a subject
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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