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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: fan · last · rock · scale · shower · tear · bass · rest

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. scale — in music
  4. shower — to wash
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. last — finally
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bass — low music
  9. tear — to rip
  10. shower — rain
  11. rock — a stone
  12. rock — music
  13. last — final
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. tear — from crying
  18. scale — size or range
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bass — the fish
  21. rest — a break
  22. last — to go on
  23. rest — what's left
  24. tear — from crying

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