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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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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: tear · rest · pound · temple · shower · bowl · ruler · spell

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. tear — from crying
  7. rest — a break
  8. shower — rain
  9. spell — letters
  10. pound — a weight
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. spell — a short time
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rest — what's left
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. spell — magic
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rest — what's left
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. ruler — for measuring

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