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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: mouse · chair · cell · shower · present · bay · court · march

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. present — a gift
  4. march — the month
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. court — of law
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. cell — in biology
  10. chair — a leader
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. march — the month
  13. court — for sport
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. court — of a king
  17. shower — rain
  18. march — music
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. present — the time now
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. cell — a phone
  24. shower — to wash

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