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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 · deal · shower · object · drill · fine · bowl · fork

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. fine — all right
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. object — an aim
  6. fork — in a road
  7. drill — a practice
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. object — a thing
  12. drill — army training
  13. cold — an illness
  14. deal — to handle
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. object — to protest
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. drill — the tool
  22. shower — to wash
  23. fine — high quality
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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