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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: shower · club · key · pitcher · tear · saw · stick · lean

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. club — for golf
  5. shower — to wash
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. key — for a lock
  15. club — a group
  16. tear — from crying
  17. club — for dancing
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. lean — thin
  21. shower — rain
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. key — in music
  24. key — the most important part

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