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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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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  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 — rain
  2. kid — to tease
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. cue — a hint
  5. kid — child
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. mug — to rob
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. mug — a face
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bark — to shout
  13. cue — for pool
  14. shower — to wash
  15. stock — shares
  16. mug — a cup
  17. bat — the animal
  18. cue — a signal
  19. stock — goods
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. court — for sport
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. court — of a king
  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