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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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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: shower · stand · mine · kid · lie · cue · trunk · straw

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. shower — rain
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. stand — to bear
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. kid — child
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. lie — to recline
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. cue — for pool
  14. cue — a signal
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. cue — a hint
  19. shower — to wash
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. mine — for digging
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — to tease

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