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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 · can · wave · file · trunk · row · rash · lean

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. rash — a series
  3. can — a tin
  4. rash — hasty
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. can — to be able to
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. row — to paddle
  11. file — a tool
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. file — a document
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. can — a tin
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. file — a line of people
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — rain
  22. lean — thin
  23. row — a line
  24. trunk — of a tree

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