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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 120 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: wind · ball · fall · court · shower · current · racket · fork

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. fork — in a road
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — electric
  10. fall — the season
  11. ball — a great time
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. fall — to drop
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — for sport
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. ball — a dance
  19. wind — moving air
  20. shower — to wash
  21. current — of water
  22. shower — rain
  23. fall — to drop
  24. wind — to turn a key

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