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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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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: mug · bat · roll · safe · ball · court · cap · shower

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. roll — a cake
  3. cap — a hat
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. ball — a dance
  8. cap — a lid
  9. mug — a cup
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. cap — of ice
  13. court — of law
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bat — the animal
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. roll — a list
  19. ball — a great time
  20. shower — rain
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. mug — to rob
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. safe — out of danger

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