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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rash — hasty
  8. cue — a signal
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. swing — music
  11. bat — the animal
  12. content — happy
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. cue — for pool
  17. swing — in golf
  18. content — the amount
  19. shower — rain
  20. cue — a hint
  21. chair — a leader
  22. shower — to wash
  23. swing — to play on
  24. rash — a series

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