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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 120 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: wound · present · land · mouse · shower · suit · kid · chest

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wound — an injury
  3. chest — a box
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kid — child
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. land — ground
  10. land — to come down
  11. present — there
  12. present — a gift
  13. chest — of your body
  14. land — a country
  15. present — the time now
  16. suit — clothes
  17. suit — in cards
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. chest — of your body
  22. suit — to fit
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. mouse — the animal

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