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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  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. scale — size or range
  2. shower — rain
  3. ball — a great time
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pound — a weight
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. ball — a dance
  11. shower — to wash
  12. scale — in music
  13. dip — to sink
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. capital — money
  22. capital — a city
  23. scale — for weighing
  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