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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: rush · shower · coach · pitch · bark · rock · stem · saw

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. stem — to come from
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. rock — music
  5. saw — the tool
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. shower — rain
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. rock — a stone
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. saw — the tool
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. pitch — completely
  23. rush — hurry
  24. bark — to shout

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