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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: shower · pitch · bowl · pop · rash · chest · wave · kid

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. pop — music
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. shower — rain
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. rash — hasty
  9. shower — to wash
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. chest — a box
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. chest — of your body
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — to visit
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. kid — child
  22. rash — a series
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wave — with your hand

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