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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. shower — to wash
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. court — of a king
  8. court — of law
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. mine — for digging
  11. swing — music
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. swing — to play on
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to sink
  16. toast — bread
  17. swing — in golf
  18. shower — rain
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. rock — a stone
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. court — for sport
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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