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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: sharp · field · shower · racket · ball · club · current · cue

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. sharp — clever
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — a group
  6. cue — a signal
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. current — electric
  10. field — a subject
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. current — happening now
  13. cue — a hint
  14. shower — to wash
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. cue — for pool
  17. field — farmland
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. current — of water
  20. field — for sport
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  24. ball — a great time

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