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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. march — the month
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. scale — in music
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. scale — size or range
  12. tear — from crying
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. tear — from crying
  15. content — the amount
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. march — music
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. content — happy
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. march — the month
  24. tear — to rip

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