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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · ball · race · tube · rock · mine · key · fork

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. key — for a lock
  3. shower — rain
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. key — in music
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. rock — music
  10. fork — in a road
  11. ball — a great time
  12. key — the most important part
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a dance
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. shower — to wash
  17. tube — a container
  18. race — a contest
  19. tube — the underground
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. race — humankind
  23. rock — a stone
  24. race — the arms race

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