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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: squash · last · rush · bank · chest · hand · shower · bulb

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. squash — the sport
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bank — for money
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. last — finally
  7. bank — for money
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. last — final
  11. chest — of your body
  12. rush — hurry
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. chest — a box
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — in cards
  23. shower — rain
  24. bank — of a river

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