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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: court · deal · tube · wake · fork · pitcher · lean · shower

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. wake — a trail
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. shower — rain
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. tube — the underground
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. shower — to wash
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. fork — in a road
  20. lean — thin
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. lean — to bend
  23. court — of law
  24. tube — a container

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