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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: tear · pop · pound · shower · swing · cell

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. swing — to play on
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — soda
  6. cell — in biology
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. cell — a phone
  10. tear — to rip
  11. shower — to wash
  12. swing — in golf
  13. tear — from crying
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pop — music
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. shower — rain
  18. tear — from crying

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