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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · hide · net · land · shower · racket · scale · arm

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. land — to come down
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. scale — size or range
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. land — a country
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. cold — not warm
  11. land — ground
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. scale — in music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. shower — to wash
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. shower — rain
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — after costs
  21. net — in sport
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. hide — to keep secret

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