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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  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 — a meteor shower
  2. kid — to tease
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pop — music
  5. pop — to visit
  6. branch — a division
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. court — for sport
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to click
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. pop — soda
  13. shower — rain
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. object — a thing
  17. kid — child
  18. court — of a king
  19. object — an aim
  20. shower — to wash
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. object — to protest
  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