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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 120 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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. ball — a great time
  4. shower — rain
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. shower — to wash
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. court — of law
  12. court — for sport
  13. cell — in biology
  14. current — of water
  15. ball — a dance
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. dip — to sink
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. current — electric
  21. cell — a phone
  22. court — of a king
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. current — happening now

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