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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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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: rest · shower · kick · fine · race · ball · rock · court

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. shower — to wash
  3. ball — a dance
  4. fine — all right
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — music
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of a king
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. rest — what's left
  14. fine — high quality
  15. race — humankind
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. race — a contest
  19. shower — rain
  20. rest — a break
  21. kick — in football
  22. ball — a great time
  23. rest — what's left
  24. court — of law

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