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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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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: game · ruler · shower · arm · pit · court · kid · perch

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. pit — in a race
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. court — of a king
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. shower — rain
  10. court — of law
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. game — a match
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. kid — child
  15. perch — the fish
  16. pit — a hole
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. court — for sport
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. kid — to tease
  24. game — wild animals

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