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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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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: cue · fall · last · land · shower · tear · bore · pop

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. land — ground
  3. tear — to rip
  4. last — finally
  5. last — final
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fall — to drop
  8. shower — rain
  9. pop — soda
  10. cue — a hint
  11. pop — to visit
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. land — to come down
  14. bore — to tire
  15. tear — from crying
  16. shower — to wash
  17. pop — music
  18. bore — to drill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cue — a signal
  21. last — to go on
  22. cue — for pool
  23. land — a country
  24. fall — to drop

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