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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. ground — a position
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. wound — an injury
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. court — of law
  13. ground — the earth
  14. ground — crushed
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. court — for sport
  18. shower — to wash
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. court — of a king
  22. shower — rain
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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