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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. pop — music
  3. shower — to wash
  4. court — of law
  5. drill — army training
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. drill — a practice
  8. court — of a king
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. shower — rain
  13. drill — the tool
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. net — in sport
  16. pop — soda
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. dip — to sink
  19. net — after costs
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. court — for sport
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. pop — to visit
  24. net — for catching

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