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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. club — a group
  3. bore — to tire
  4. stock — shares
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. court — for sport
  7. shower — rain
  8. pop — soda
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stock — goods
  11. pop — music
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — for golf
  16. bore — to drill
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. squash — the sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. pop — to visit
  24. squash — to crush

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