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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. shower — to wash
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. court — for sport
  6. ball — a great time
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. perch — the fish
  10. rest — a break
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. root — of a plant
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. court — of law
  15. root — of a word
  16. spring — of water
  17. ball — a dance
  18. court — of a king
  19. root — the cause
  20. rest — what's left
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. spring — the season
  24. cabinet — ministers

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