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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. roll — a cake
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. clip — a video
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. shower — rain
  8. ball — a dance
  9. row — a line
  10. wake — a trail
  11. roll — a list
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. shower — to wash
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. clip — to cut
  18. clip — for paper
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. lean — thin
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. lean — to bend
  24. row — to paddle

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