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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: bat · pass · fork · plane · court · pit · chair · shower

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pass — a permit
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. fork — in a road
  8. plane — a tool
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. court — for sport
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. pit — in a race
  19. bat — the animal
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. court — of law
  24. chair — a leader

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