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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. wind — moving air
  8. foot — a measure
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. rock — music
  11. cap — a hat
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. shower — rain
  15. mate — a partner
  16. mine — for digging
  17. content — happy
  18. wind — moving air
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. shower — to wash
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. cap — of ice
  23. rock — a stone
  24. content — the amount

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