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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. court — of law
  3. shower — to wash
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. court — of a king
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. shower — rain
  10. rash — hasty
  11. net — for catching
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. court — for sport
  14. bore — to tire
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — after costs
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bore — to drill

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