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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 116 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: mark · straw · spring · shower · kid · bark · rush · mine

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. spring — of water
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bark — to shout
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. kid — child
  8. shower — to wash
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. spring — a coil
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mark — a grade
  14. mine — for digging
  15. kid — to tease
  16. shower — rain
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. rush — hurry
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. spring — the season

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