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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: hand · tube · bank · pop · shower · sharp · plane · lean

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. pop — music
  3. tube — the underground
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. sharp — clever
  6. lean — thin
  7. pop — to visit
  8. hand — help
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. pop — soda
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. lean — to bend
  16. plane — a tool
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. tube — a container
  21. shower — to wash
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. hand — in cards

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