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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 120 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: bass · coach · cabinet · net · tear · shower · squash · fine

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. squash — the sport
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. shower — rain
  8. net — for catching
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bass — the fish
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. tear — from crying
  15. net — after costs
  16. bass — low music
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. fine — all right
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. squash — to crush
  22. tear — to rip
  23. net — in sport
  24. cabinet — ministers

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