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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: rest · date · shower · straw · suit · ruler · squash · ball

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. suit — in cards
  3. rest — what's left
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. squash — the sport
  6. ball — a great time
  7. squash — to crush
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. ball — a dance
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. rest — what's left
  13. date — the fruit
  14. shower — rain
  15. suit — to fit
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. rest — a break
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. suit — clothes

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