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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 · shower · wound · rush · field · content · cap · wave

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. field — for sport
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. cap — of ice
  7. shower — rain
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. ground — the earth
  10. shower — to wash
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. field — a subject
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. field — farmland
  17. rush — hurry
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. cap — a lid
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — crushed

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