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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: shower · fork · present · swing · rash · cue · spell · rule

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. present — the time now
  5. spell — a short time
  6. fork — in a road
  7. rash — hasty
  8. spell — letters
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. rule — a law
  11. cue — a hint
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. present — there
  14. swing — in golf
  15. spell — magic
  16. present — a gift
  17. cue — a signal
  18. rule — government
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — to play on
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. cue — for pool

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