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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: saw · content · safe · march · shower · pop · season · fork

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. season — of the year
  3. march — music
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pop — soda
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. season — in sport
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — to visit
  11. content — the amount
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. march — the month
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. march — the month
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. content — happy
  21. saw — the tool
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. shower — rain
  24. safe — out of danger

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