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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 120 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. shower — rain
  3. squash — to crush
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. court — of law
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bass — low music
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bass — the fish
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lean — thin
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. court — for sport
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — to bend
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. cold — an illness
  24. squash — the 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