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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: rest · chest · bowl · shower · wave · cap

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. rest — a break
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rest — what's left
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. cap — a hat
  15. shower — to wash
  16. rest — what's left
  17. shower — rain
  18. wave — a sudden rise

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