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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: mug · shower · bear · sharp · land · wound · stand · spring

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bear — the animal
  4. shower — to wash
  5. shower — rain
  6. spring — of water
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. mug — to rob
  9. sharp — clever
  10. bear — the animal
  11. spring — the season
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — a country
  14. mug — a face
  15. land — ground
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. stand — to bear
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. spring — a coil
  24. mug — a cup

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