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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · kick · shower · content · fork · deal

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. 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. fork — a garden tool
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. kick — in football
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. content — the amount
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. shower — rain
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. content — happy
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. fork — in a road
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. deal — to handle
  17. shower — to wash
  18. 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