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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. content — happy
  3. ground — a position
  4. shower — rain
  5. ground — the earth
  6. shower — to wash
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. mine — for digging
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. swing — music
  17. swing — in golf
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. court — of a king
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. swing — to play on

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