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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: degree · rest · court · racket · net · shower · land · march

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. land — a country
  3. net — for catching
  4. rest — a break
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. rest — what's left
  7. degree — from a university
  8. net — in sport
  9. march — the month
  10. shower — to wash
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. net — after costs
  14. court — for sport
  15. degree — temperature
  16. court — of law
  17. rest — what's left
  18. court — of a king
  19. degree — an amount
  20. march — the month
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. march — music
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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