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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: calf · rash · roll · board · shower · wind · bark · spring

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. board — a committee
  4. spring — a coil
  5. board — to get on
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. roll — a cake
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. rash — hasty
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. roll — a list
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — to shout
  17. spring — of water
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. rash — a series
  20. wind — moving air
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. spring — the season
  24. wind — to turn a key

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