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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: pitcher · rash · row · shower · bass · foot · cap · last

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. last — to go on
  3. bass — low music
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rash — hasty
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a line
  10. last — finally
  11. bass — the fish
  12. last — final
  13. cap — a lid
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — a series
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — rain
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. foot — a measure
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. cap — of ice

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