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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: content · coach · pop · bulb · drill · shower · last · court

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pop — to visit
  3. last — to go on
  4. court — for sport
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. drill — the tool
  7. last — final
  8. shower — to wash
  9. court — of law
  10. drill — a practice
  11. shower — rain
  12. content — the amount
  13. court — of a king
  14. pop — music
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. drill — army training
  20. pop — soda
  21. last — finally
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. content — happy
  24. bulb — for light

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