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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. court — of a king
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. shower — to wash
  7. ball — a great time
  8. shower — rain
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. rest — a break
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. rest — what's left
  17. court — of law
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. rest — what's left
  20. ball — a dance
  21. kick — in football
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. march — the month
  24. court — for sport

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