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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. mug — to rob
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mug — a face
  5. shower — to wash
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. march — the month
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. court — of a king
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. race — humankind
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. march — the month
  16. court — for sport
  17. race — a contest
  18. race — the arms race
  19. mug — a cup
  20. saw — the tool
  21. shower — rain
  22. saw — the tool
  23. march — music
  24. court — of law

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