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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: racket · ground · lean · chest · wound · safe · clip · shower

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. ground — a position
  3. shower — to wash
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. lean — to bend
  6. chest — a box
  7. wound — an injury
  8. ground — the earth
  9. chest — of your body
  10. clip — a video
  11. shower — rain
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wound — an injury
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. ground — crushed
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — thin
  22. clip — to cut
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. chest — of your body

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