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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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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — a position
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — of a king
  9. ground — crushed
  10. court — of law
  11. pop — soda
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. content — the amount
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — rain
  17. content — happy
  18. pop — music
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. fork — in a road
  23. pop — to visit
  24. court — for sport

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