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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: bulb · kid · rush · land · cap · mine · shower · mouse

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bulb — for light
  3. land — to come down
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bulb — for light
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. mine — for digging
  14. land — a country
  15. kid — child
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. cap — a lid
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. land — ground
  20. kid — to tease
  21. cap — of ice
  22. shower — rain
  23. rush — hurry
  24. shower — to wash

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