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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: drill · hand · shower · lash · rush · bank · bore · cold

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. hand — in cards
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bank — for money
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. cold — not warm
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. bank — for money
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. rush — hurry
  12. hand — help
  13. drill — army training
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. shower — rain
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. bore — to tire
  19. cold — an illness
  20. drill — a practice
  21. shower — to wash
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bore — gave birth

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