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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: lash · land · drill · face · rash · present · saw · shower

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. face — to confront
  4. shower — to wash
  5. rash — hasty
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. land — to come down
  8. saw — the tool
  9. present — the time now
  10. present — a gift
  11. present — there
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — the tool
  15. land — ground
  16. drill — army training
  17. land — a country
  18. rash — a series
  19. face — to point toward
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. face — part of the head
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. shower — rain

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