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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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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: pitcher · wake · roll · suit · clip · shower

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. clip — a video
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. suit — to fit
  7. shower — rain
  8. suit — in cards
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. clip — to cut
  17. suit — clothes
  18. roll — a cake

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