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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: fork · row · foot · straw · rash · club · shower · leaves

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — a measure
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. rash — a series
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. club — a group
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. row — to paddle
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. rash — hasty
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. club — for golf
  21. row — a line
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. row — a quarrel

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