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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: face · pass · shower · hand · wound · chair · rule · present

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. shower — rain
  3. shower — to wash
  4. present — there
  5. face — to point toward
  6. rule — government
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. face — to confront
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. chair — a leader
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — in cards
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. face — part of the head
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — a permit
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. rule — a law

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