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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 116 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: net · cold · can · shower · ball · drill · tear · wind

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. shower — rain
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. ball — a great time
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. net — for catching
  7. wind — moving air
  8. ball — a dance
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cold — an illness
  11. drill — a practice
  12. can — a tin
  13. wind — moving air
  14. can — to be able to
  15. tear — from crying
  16. net — in sport
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. tear — to rip
  19. can — a tin
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. cold — not warm
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — after costs

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