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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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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: fall · bat · wind · suit · pop · patient · court · shower

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. suit — in cards
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. suit — clothes
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. suit — to fit
  8. fall — to drop
  9. shower — to wash
  10. pop — to visit
  11. court — for sport
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. court — of law
  14. fall — to drop
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. court — of a king
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pop — music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bat — the animal
  22. pop — soda
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. shower — rain

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