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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.

Make a worksheet

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: shower · hide · court · season · land · spell · fan · mug

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. spell — a short time
  3. shower — rain
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. land — to come down
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. land — ground
  9. season — of the year
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. season — in sport
  13. shower — to wash
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. court — of law
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. spell — letters
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. mug — to rob
  23. mug — a face
  24. spell — magic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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