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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. shower — rain
  3. cap — a lid
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of a king
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. root — of a plant
  10. swing — music
  11. root — the cause
  12. last — final
  13. last — to go on
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. swing — to play on
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. cap — of ice
  18. swing — in golf
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. court — of law
  22. root — of a word
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. shower — to wash

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