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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: shower · band · fan · object · rush · rule · pit · court

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pit — in a race
  4. rule — a law
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pit — a hole
  10. band — a ring
  11. rule — government
  12. band — a music group
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. object — to protest
  18. object — a thing
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. shower — rain
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. court — of law

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