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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: dip · court · staff · hand · toast · rash · shower · tear

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. shower — rain
  3. staff — employees
  4. dip — to sink
  5. hand — help
  6. tear — from crying
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. rash — a series
  12. staff — a stick
  13. tear — from crying
  14. shower — to wash
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. toast — bread
  18. hand — in cards
  19. staff — employees
  20. tear — to rip
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. court — of a king

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