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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.

Make a worksheet

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: fine · shower · wind · bowl · clip · racket · jam · temple

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. clip — for paper
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. shower — to wash
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fine — all right
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. fine — high quality
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. wind — moving air
  18. clip — a video
  19. shower — rain
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. wind — moving air
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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