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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: race · cue · shower · nail · staff · trunk · content · game

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. shower — to wash
  4. game — wild animals
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. cue — a hint
  8. content — the amount
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. staff — employees
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cue — for pool
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. content — happy
  15. race — a contest
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. race — the arms race
  23. shower — rain
  24. race — humankind

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