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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 · wave · cue · trunk · lean · drill · last · pitcher

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. shower — rain
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. last — to go on
  7. cue — a hint
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — to bend
  13. cue — a signal
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — the tool
  19. shower — to wash
  20. last — finally
  21. drill — a practice
  22. cue — for pool
  23. last — final
  24. wave — with your hand

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