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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rash — a series
  5. court — for sport
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. shower — to wash
  8. rest — what's left
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. court — of law
  12. row — to paddle
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. row — a line
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. rash — hasty
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. shower — rain
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rest — a break
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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