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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 · cue · shower · tube · mine · scale · fork · nail

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. scale — in music
  4. shower — rain
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. tube — a container
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. cue — a hint
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. tube — the underground
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. cue — a signal
  15. cue — for pool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. bat — the animal
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. scale — size or range
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. shower — to wash

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