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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: hide · dip · kid · race · bowl · wound · leaves · shower

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. kid — to tease
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wound — an injury
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. shower — to wash
  16. wound — an injury
  17. race — humankind
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. race — the arms race
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — rain
  23. kid — child
  24. leaves — of a tree

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