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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: net · wind · charge · mouse · straw · shower · present · cell

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. charge — a price
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. shower — rain
  8. net — in sport
  9. present — there
  10. cell — in biology
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — a gift
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. cell — a phone
  21. charge — in control
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — after costs
  24. charge — electricity

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