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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: shower · temple · cell · last · dip · rush · suit · fan

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  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. rush — a thrill
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. last — finally
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. suit — to fit
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. last — final
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — clothes
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. cell — in biology
  18. rush — hurry
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. last — to go on
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. dip — to sink
  23. shower — to wash
  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