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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: hand · shower · suit · cold · bark · current · pitch · ruler

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. pitch — completely
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — rain
  5. current — of water
  6. suit — to fit
  7. current — electric
  8. cold — an illness
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bark — to shout
  11. shower — to wash
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cold — not warm
  15. suit — in cards
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. suit — clothes
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. current — happening now
  23. hand — help
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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