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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: cold · bear · firm · shower · hand · bound · mark · sharp

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. firm — steady
  5. bound — tied together
  6. hand — in cards
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bear — the animal
  9. mark — a grade
  10. sharp — clever
  11. cold — an illness
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — certain
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. firm — decided
  18. firm — a company
  19. cold — not warm
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. hand — help
  22. shower — rain
  23. mark — a trace
  24. sharp — exactly

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