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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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Word bank
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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: bat · shower · fork · rest · safe · pop · scale · fall

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. fall — the season
  3. scale — in music
  4. scale — size or range
  5. bat — the animal
  6. shower — to wash
  7. rest — what's left
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. rest — what's left
  11. pop — soda
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. pop — to visit
  18. shower — rain
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. pop — music
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. rest — a break

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