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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wake · kid · row · bass · court · rash

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. rash — a series
  8. row — to paddle
  9. court — of law
  10. row — a line
  11. bass — low music
  12. bass — the fish
  13. wake — a trail
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. kid — to tease

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