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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: spell · bass · dip · bulb · shower · pitch · straw · lie

  1. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. bass — low music
  4. shower — rain
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pitch — completely
  10. lie — to recline
  11. bass — the fish
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. spell — letters
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. shower — to wash
  21. spell — magic
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. spell — a short time

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