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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. clip — a video
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. ground — a position
  7. ball — a dance
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. shower — rain
  10. fork — in a road
  11. clip — to cut
  12. ball — a great time
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. clip — for paper
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. ground — crushed
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. ground — the earth
  23. shower — to wash
  24. fork — to eat with

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