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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: object · suit · court · squash · wave · rash · shower · net

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. net — for catching
  3. suit — to fit
  4. court — of law
  5. shower — rain
  6. suit — in cards
  7. object — an aim
  8. squash — the sport
  9. rash — a series
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. object — a thing
  13. court — of a king
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. squash — to crush
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. suit — clothes
  19. object — to protest
  20. rash — hasty
  21. court — for sport
  22. net — in sport
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. shower — to wash

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