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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 120 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 · bowl · temple · cold · pitcher · deal · cue · season

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. cue — a signal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. cue — for pool
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cold — an illness
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. cold — not warm
  17. season — in sport
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. season — of the year
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cue — a hint
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. bowl — to roll

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