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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: kid · stand · fan · roll · spring · date · shower · patient

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. roll — a list
  4. spring — of water
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. stand — to bear
  9. kid — child
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. roll — a cake
  15. date — the fruit
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. kid — to tease
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. fan — to cool the air

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