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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: cold · ball · bass · rush · mark · stand · shower · rock

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. mark — a trace
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bass — the fish
  6. rush — hurry
  7. ball — a great time
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. mark — a grade
  12. stand — to bear
  13. shower — rain
  14. rock — music
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bass — low music
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. mark — to pay attention

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