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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. shower — to wash
  3. content — happy
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. mug — a cup
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pass — a permit
  11. content — the amount
  12. net — after costs
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. mug — to rob
  15. squash — the sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — to crush
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. mug — a face
  22. net — in sport
  23. shower — rain
  24. nail — on a finger

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