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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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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: squash · court · calf · sharp · land · mouse · last · shower

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. shower — rain
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. last — finally
  6. last — to go on
  7. court — of law
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. land — a country
  10. last — final
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. squash — to crush
  13. court — of a king
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. shower — to wash
  16. sharp — clever
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. court — for sport
  21. land — to come down
  22. squash — the sport
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. land — ground

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