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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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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: snap · shower · pop · hand · court · fine · rush · last

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. last — finally
  3. shower — to wash
  4. court — of a king
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. fine — high quality
  7. last — final
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. court — of law
  10. last — to go on
  11. pop — soda
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. hand — in cards
  15. rush — hurry
  16. hand — help
  17. snap — to click
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pop — to visit
  21. fine — all right
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. pop — music

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