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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 120 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: pitcher · shower · firm · board · rush · last · saw · fan

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. saw — the tool
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. board — a committee
  11. last — final
  12. shower — to wash
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. last — to go on
  16. firm — steady
  17. board — to get on
  18. firm — decided
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. saw — the tool
  21. last — finally
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. shower — rain
  24. firm — a company

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