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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: shower · pitch · tear · degree · bore · firm · chair · wave

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. firm — steady
  7. tear — from crying
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. degree — an amount
  10. firm — decided
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. firm — a company
  14. bore — to tire
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — to rip
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. tear — from crying
  23. degree — from a university
  24. bore — to drill

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