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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: ground · scale · mark · content · shower · last · spring · lean

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. ground — crushed
  3. spring — the season
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. content — the amount
  6. scale — in music
  7. content — happy
  8. mark — a grade
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. spring — a coil
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spring — of water
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — to wash
  15. last — final
  16. last — finally
  17. lean — thin
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. scale — size or range
  20. ground — the earth
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. last — to go on
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. ground — a position

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