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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: cap · race · stock · court · hand · dip · shower · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. race — humankind
  3. cap — a lid
  4. race — the arms race
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. dip — to sink
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. court — of law
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — for sport
  15. stock — goods
  16. race — a contest
  17. hand — in cards
  18. stock — shares
  19. shower — rain
  20. cap — a hat
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. shower — to wash
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bat — 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