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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: rush · row · pitch · wave · face · spell · shower · march

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. shower — to wash
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. spell — letters
  8. pitch — completely
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. face — part of the head
  12. rush — hurry
  13. shower — rain
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. spell — a short time
  17. row — a line
  18. spell — magic
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — to point toward
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. row — to paddle
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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