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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: shower · ball · coach · date · kick · land · fall · wax

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — to drop
  4. kick — in football
  5. land — ground
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. shower — to wash
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. land — to come down
  13. wax — to grow
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. date — the fruit
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. land — a country
  24. fall — the season

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