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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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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: bay · lash · rest · mouse · hide · tear · shower · ball

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ball — a dance
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. rest — what's left
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. shower — to wash
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. shower — rain
  24. rest — a break

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