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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: bear · shower · tube · spell · fine · pitch · spring · chair

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. tube — a container
  5. spring — the season
  6. spell — magic
  7. spring — of water
  8. tube — the underground
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. spell — a short time
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a leader
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bear — the animal
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bear — the animal
  18. spell — letters
  19. fine — high quality
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — completely
  22. fine — all right
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. shower — rain

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