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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: race · mark · deal · bear · shower · fan · wound · hand

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. hand — help
  3. bear — the animal
  4. deal — to handle
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hand — in cards
  8. wound — an injury
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. race — a contest
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bear — the animal
  17. race — the arms race
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. wound — an injury
  21. shower — rain
  22. mark — a grade
  23. mark — a trace
  24. race — humankind

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