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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
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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: shower · hide · mine · sharp · rush · craft · ground · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. shower — rain
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. chair — a leader
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. sharp — clever
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. ground — crushed
  14. craft — boats
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. shower — to wash
  17. ground — the earth
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. rush — hurry
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. mine — for digging
  23. ground — a position
  24. craft — a skill

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