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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: rash · tube · wave · craft · ground · shower · wind · sharp

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. tube — a container
  7. ground — crushed
  8. wind — moving air
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. ground — a position
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rash — a series
  16. rash — hasty
  17. shower — rain
  18. sharp — clever
  19. craft — a skill
  20. tube — the underground
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. craft — boats
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. wave — of the sea

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