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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: bark · shower · wind · face · present · patient · spell · fall

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. face — to confront
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — magic
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. present — there
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. present — the time now
  16. fall — the season
  17. face — to point toward
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. present — a gift
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. face — part of the head
  24. wind — to turn a key

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