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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · craft · game · fork · mine · mark · calf · court

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a skill
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. shower — rain
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. court — for sport
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. court — of law
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. shower — to wash
  14. mine — for digging
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. mark — a trace
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. court — of a king
  20. mark — a grade
  21. game — wild animals
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. fork — in a road
  24. calf — a young 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