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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. shower — rain
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bat — the animal
  13. content — happy
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. march — music
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. straw — a straw man

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