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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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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: court · shower · fan · bear · dip · trunk · swing · stem

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. court — of a king
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. shower — to wash
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. swing — music
  13. swing — to play on
  14. bear — the animal
  15. swing — in golf
  16. bear — the animal
  17. court — of law
  18. stem — to come from
  19. dip — to sink
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. court — for sport
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — of a plant

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