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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: fan · mouse · band · ball · current · pitch · court · mate

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mate — a friend
  6. ball — a dance
  7. current — electric
  8. current — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. pitch — completely
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. court — of law
  14. mate — to breed
  15. current — happening now
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. band — a ring
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. band — a music group
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. ball — a great time
  24. band — a rubber band

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