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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. shower — rain
  3. wind — moving air
  4. shower — to wash
  5. bear — the animal
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. tear — from crying
  9. court — for sport
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. dip — to sink
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. saw — the tool
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — the animal
  19. saw — the tool
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wind — moving air
  22. court — of law
  23. tear — to rip
  24. wind — to turn a key

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