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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · bowl · mine · tear · file · fan · temple

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. file — a document
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. file — a tool
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. tear — to rip
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mine — for digging
  13. tear — from crying
  14. file — a line of people
  15. shower — to wash
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. mine — belonging to me

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