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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: wave · band · pitcher · bore · shower · wake · bass · straw

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. band — a ring
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bore — to tire
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. band — a music group
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bass — low music
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. shower — rain
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wake — a trail
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bore — to drill
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. band — a rubber band

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