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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: shower · can · snap · row · jam · racket · kid · bound

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. can — a tin
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — certain
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. snap — to click
  10. can — to be able to
  11. row — to paddle
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. bound — tied together
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. kid — child
  17. shower — rain
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. row — a line
  21. kid — to tease
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — to wash
  24. racket — for tennis

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