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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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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 · pop · cell · tear · lash · pass

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pop — to visit
  3. shower — to wash
  4. cell — in biology
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. tear — to rip
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. pass — a permit
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. pop — soda
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. shower — rain
  13. tear — from crying
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. cell — a phone

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