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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: bass · shower · mug · roll · calf · file · dip · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bass — low music
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. shower — to wash
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bass — the fish
  8. dip — to sink
  9. roll — a list
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. file — a tool
  13. mug — a cup
  14. file — a line of people
  15. shower — rain
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. mug — a face
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. file — a document
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. mug — to rob

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