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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: sharp · fall · shower · clip · hide · mine · mouse · dip

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. shower — to wash
  7. sharp — clever
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. clip — for paper
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. clip — to cut
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. clip — a video
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. mine — for digging

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