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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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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. shower — rain
  3. rock — music
  4. date — the fruit
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. content — happy
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. present — there
  11. rash — a series
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. content — the amount
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. rash — hasty
  16. shower — to wash
  17. present — the time now
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. rock — a stone
  21. present — a gift
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. rock — to move gently

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