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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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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: spring · current · ruler · shower · court · content · can · tear

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. spring — the season
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. tear — from crying
  5. court — for sport
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. court — of law
  8. current — electric
  9. current — of water
  10. tear — to rip
  11. can — to be able to
  12. court — of a king
  13. can — a tin
  14. content — the amount
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. spring — a coil
  17. content — happy
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. spring — of water
  22. tear — from crying
  23. current — happening now
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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