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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: swing · last · rush · spring · calf · current · bowl · shower

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. current — electric
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. last — finally
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — a coil
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. current — of water
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. swing — to play on
  14. spring — of water
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. last — to go on
  17. shower — rain
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. swing — music
  20. last — final
  21. rush — hurry
  22. swing — in golf
  23. shower — to wash
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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