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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.

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: bowl · shower · bulb · tear · pitcher · perch · mine · bass

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. mine — for digging
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. perch — the fish
  6. shower — rain
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. bass — the fish
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. shower — to wash
  17. bass — low music
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. tear — from crying
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. tear — to rip

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