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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 · cue · content · bay · row · shower · rule · rest

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. rule — a law
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. cue — a hint
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — to wash
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — what's left
  12. row — a line
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. rule — government
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. rest — a break
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cue — for pool
  24. pitcher — a jug

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