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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · race · tube · spell · dip · bass · kid · bank

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. shower — rain
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bank — for money
  7. spell — letters
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. spell — a short time
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. kid — to tease
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. race — a contest
  14. tube — a container
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bass — the fish
  17. race — the arms race
  18. bank — for money
  19. shower — to wash
  20. bank — of a river
  21. kid — child
  22. spell — magic
  23. bass — low music
  24. race — humankind

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