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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: coach · shower · court · spring · mouse · pit · pop · content

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. spring — the season
  3. court — for sport
  4. content — happy
  5. content — the amount
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. pop — to visit
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pop — soda
  11. pit — in a race
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. court — of a king
  15. spring — a coil
  16. court — of law
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pop — music
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. spring — of water
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. shower — to wash
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. mouse — the animal

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