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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: jam · club · squash · tear · hide · pitcher · shower · lash

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — to wash
  3. squash — the sport
  4. club — a group
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. tear — to rip
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — to crush
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. club — for golf
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. club — for dancing
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. tear — from crying
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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