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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 116 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: season · content · wave · land · rock · bark · bat · nail

  1. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. land — a country
  7. rock — a stone
  8. content — the amount
  9. land — to come down
  10. rock — music
  11. bat — the animal
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. season — in sport
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. content — happy
  18. land — ground
  19. bark — to shout
  20. season — of the year
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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