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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: march · rush · shower · deal · tube · fall · cell · firm

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. tube — a container
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tube — the underground
  6. fall — the season
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. firm — steady
  10. shower — to wash
  11. firm — decided
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. fall — to drop
  14. shower — rain
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. march — music
  17. march — the month
  18. firm — a company
  19. fall — to drop
  20. march — the month
  21. rush — hurry
  22. deal — to handle
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. rush — a thrill

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