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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 120 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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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 · cabinet · rest · nail · bank · fork · content · land

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. rest — what's left
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — happy
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rest — a break
  8. land — ground
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. fork — in a road
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. content — the amount
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. land — a country
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bank — of a river
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bank — for money
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. land — to come down
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — rain

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