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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: bark · shower · fine · court · mouse · fan · rock · race

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. court — for sport
  3. rock — music
  4. court — of law
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. shower — to wash
  8. fine — high quality
  9. fine — all right
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. court — of a king
  16. shower — rain
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — to shout
  20. race — humankind
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. rock — a stone

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