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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: spell · mug · row · toast · shower · lean · court · arm

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. shower — to wash
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. mug — a face
  6. toast — bread
  7. shower — rain
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — a short time
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. mug — to rob
  12. court — of a king
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. spell — magic
  16. row — a line
  17. lean — thin
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. court — of law
  20. lean — to bend
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. row — to paddle
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. mug — a cup

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