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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bore — to drill
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. cold — an illness
  10. content — happy
  11. cold — not warm
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bore — to tire
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. scale — in music
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pound — a weight
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. shower — rain
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. content — the amount
  24. shower — to wash

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