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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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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: pitch · tear · trunk · wave · race · shower

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — completely
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. race — humankind
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. race — a contest
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — to wash
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. race — the arms race
  18. trunk — of a car

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