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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 · drill · squash · content · ball · track · bay · key

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. drill — army training
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. ball — a great time
  5. track — a song
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. content — happy
  8. shower — rain
  9. drill — the tool
  10. ball — a dance
  11. key — for a lock
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. track — a path
  14. drill — a practice
  15. key — the most important part
  16. squash — the sport
  17. track — to keep track
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. content — the amount
  20. key — in music
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — to wash
  24. ball — a round shape

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