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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. court — for sport
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. shower — to wash
  5. mug — to rob
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. court — of law
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. court — of a king
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a great time
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. mug — a face
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. ball — a dance
  23. mug — a cup
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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