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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: ball · hide · pop · squash · face · shower · court · object

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. court — for sport
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. face — part of the head
  5. ball — a dance
  6. face — to point toward
  7. squash — to crush
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. object — to protest
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. shower — rain
  16. court — of law
  17. squash — the sport
  18. ball — a great time
  19. pop — soda
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. object — an aim
  22. shower — to wash
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. object — a thing

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