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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: snap · tear · shower · spring · rock · tube · foot · pitch

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. tube — a container
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. tear — from crying
  6. foot — a measure
  7. spring — the season
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. rock — music
  12. tear — to rip
  13. spring — a coil
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. spring — of water
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. tube — the underground
  19. rock — a stone
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. snap — to click
  22. shower — to wash
  23. pitch — completely
  24. foot — the bottom

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