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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.

Make a worksheet

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: last · charge · court · cue · wind · shower

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cue — a hint
  3. court — of law
  4. last — final
  5. charge — a price
  6. court — for sport
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. wind — moving air
  9. last — finally
  10. shower — to wash
  11. cue — a signal
  12. court — of a king
  13. charge — in control
  14. cue — for pool
  15. last — to go on
  16. charge — electricity
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — a meteor shower

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