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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 · date · land · mug · suit · wake · fall · hide

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. shower — to wash
  4. fall — to drop
  5. suit — in cards
  6. date — the fruit
  7. mug — a face
  8. fall — the season
  9. wake — a trail
  10. suit — clothes
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. fall — to drop
  14. land — ground
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. suit — to fit
  17. mug — a cup
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. shower — rain
  23. mug — to rob
  24. land — a country

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