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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. content — happy
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. wound — an injury
  10. spring — the season
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. mine — for digging
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. content — the amount
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. shower — to wash
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. shower — rain

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