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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cue — for pool
  3. tube — a container
  4. court — for sport
  5. last — to go on
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. shower — rain
  9. court — of a king
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. roll — a list
  12. roll — a cake
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. tube — the underground
  16. last — finally
  17. court — of law
  18. bat — the animal
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cue — a signal
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. last — final
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. roll — on a roll

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