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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: season · shower · court · rock · cue · mine · charge · degree

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cue — a hint
  4. charge — electricity
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. cue — a signal
  7. cue — for pool
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. season — of the year
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. charge — in control
  12. rock — a stone
  13. season — in sport
  14. charge — a price
  15. degree — temperature
  16. court — of law
  17. shower — rain
  18. degree — from a university
  19. shower — to wash
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — music
  24. degree — an amount

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