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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. ground — a position
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. cell — a phone
  8. ground — the earth
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. cell — in biology
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. cap — a lid
  14. cap — a hat
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. current — electric
  18. cap — of ice
  19. current — happening now
  20. ground — crushed
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. current — of water
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a car

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