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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: bark · shower · coach · rash · stand · band · rush · lean

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. shower — rain
  4. band — a ring
  5. shower — to wash
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. lean — thin
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rash — a series
  11. bark — to shout
  12. stand — to bear
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. rush — hurry
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. rash — hasty
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. band — a music group
  24. lean — to bend

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