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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. shower — rain
  4. track — a path
  5. court — for sport
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bat — the animal
  9. track — to keep track
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — a division
  12. wound — an injury
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. track — a song
  15. court — of law
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. wound — an injury
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. hand — in cards
  22. court — of a king
  23. hand — help
  24. shower — to wash

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