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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. shower — to wash
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. shower — rain
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mug — to rob
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bark — to shout
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. mug — a cup
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. content — the amount
  19. mug — a face
  20. pass — a permit
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. date — the fruit
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. content — happy

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