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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: bear · cell · toast · shower · drill · cabinet · tear · fan

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. drill — a practice
  6. shower — to wash
  7. tear — from crying
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. shower — rain
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. drill — army training
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. toast — bread
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bear — the animal
  21. drill — the tool
  22. cell — in biology
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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