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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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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 · bear · content · shower · trunk · mark · march · track

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  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. march — the month
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. track — a path
  5. content — happy
  6. mark — a grade
  7. mark — a trace
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — crushed
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. shower — to wash
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. content — the amount
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. track — to keep track
  20. bear — the animal
  21. ground — a position
  22. track — a song
  23. trunk — of a tree
  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