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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 116 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. content — happy
  5. shower — rain
  6. bear — the animal
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. rest — what's left
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rest — a break
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. shower — to wash
  18. bear — the animal
  19. suit — to fit
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bark — to shout
  23. suit — in cards
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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