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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mug — a cup
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. shower — rain
  7. court — for sport
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. prune — to trim
  13. ball — a dance
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. mug — to rob
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. squash — the sport
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. ball — a great time
  23. court — of law
  24. court — of a king

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