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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 120 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: can · club · shower · bulb · drill · cold · bark · rule

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. cold — an illness
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. rule — a law
  6. shower — to wash
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. club — for golf
  9. bulb — for light
  10. rule — government
  11. can — to be able to
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bark — to shout
  14. can — a tin
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bulb — for light
  18. club — a group
  19. drill — the tool
  20. cold — not warm
  21. can — a tin
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. drill — army training
  24. club — for dancing

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