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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 120 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: mouse · degree · land · shower · hide · saw · bank · fall

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. bank — for money
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. fall — to drop
  6. land — ground
  7. bank — for money
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. saw — the tool
  10. degree — from a university
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — to wash
  14. land — a country
  15. degree — an amount
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. shower — rain
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bank — of a river
  21. saw — the tool
  22. fall — the season
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. fall — to drop

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