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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: pitch · wave · shower · can · straw · prune · kid · capital

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. capital — money
  7. shower — rain
  8. pitch — completely
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. can — a tin
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. capital — a city
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. prune — to trim
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. shower — to wash
  20. can — to be able to
  21. prune — to trim
  22. can — a tin
  23. kid — to tease
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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