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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: shower · can · court · net · roll · chair · wound · row

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. roll — a cake
  3. net — in sport
  4. shower — to wash
  5. court — of a king
  6. can — a tin
  7. roll — a list
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wound — an injury
  10. shower — rain
  11. can — to be able to
  12. row — to paddle
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. net — after costs
  16. chair — a leader
  17. court — of law
  18. court — for sport
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. row — a line
  22. wound — an injury
  23. net — for catching
  24. can — a tin

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