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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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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: court · shower · mark · band · rush · straw

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. band — a music group
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. court — of a king
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. court — of law
  7. shower — to wash
  8. mark — a grade
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. shower — rain
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. rush — hurry
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. court — for sport
  18. band — a ring

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