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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
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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: spell · ball · mine · shower · court · file · row · cue

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spell — letters
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. court — of law
  5. cue — a hint
  6. row — to paddle
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. file — a line of people
  9. shower — rain
  10. mine — for digging
  11. court — for sport
  12. ball — a great time
  13. file — a document
  14. court — of a king
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. row — a line
  17. spell — a short time
  18. file — a tool
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. spell — magic
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. ball — a dance

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