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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: track · trunk · court · shower · rule · cap · wake · rush

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. rule — a law
  4. cap — of ice
  5. rush — hurry
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. track — a song
  9. rule — government
  10. court — for sport
  11. wake — a trail
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. cap — a lid
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. court — of law
  19. cap — a hat
  20. track — to keep track
  21. court — of a king
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. track — a path

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