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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: trunk · court · hand · mouse · shower · ball · pass · bear

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. court — of a king
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. bear — the animal
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pass — a permit
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. shower — to wash
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. ball — a great time
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — in cards
  14. court — for sport
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. court — of law
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bear — the animal
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. ball — a dance
  24. mouse — the animal

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