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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: march · shower · cue · rash · squash · nail · tear · pitcher

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  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. nail — for a hammer
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. march — the month
  5. shower — rain
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. cue — a signal
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. cue — a hint
  12. march — the month
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cue — for pool
  17. rash — hasty
  18. squash — to crush
  19. rash — a series
  20. march — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. squash — the sport
  23. shower — to wash
  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