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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: foot · race · roll · mine · season · mug · shower · fan

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. season — of the year
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. race — a contest
  5. shower — to wash
  6. mug — a cup
  7. race — humankind
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mug — to rob
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. mug — a face
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. race — the arms race
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. foot — a measure
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. mine — for digging
  18. roll — a cake
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. shower — rain
  23. roll — a list
  24. season — in sport

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