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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. file — a document
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. last — finally
  8. last — final
  9. file — a tool
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. shower — to wash
  12. toast — bread
  13. last — to go on
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. court — of a king
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. shower — rain
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. file — a line of people
  24. kick — in football

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