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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: court · calf · ball · club · swing · lean · shower · fork

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  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. fork — to eat with
  2. court — of law
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. club — for dancing
  5. ball — a great time
  6. swing — to play on
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. ball — a dance
  9. shower — to wash
  10. lean — thin
  11. swing — in golf
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. fork — in a road
  14. lean — to bend
  15. club — for golf
  16. shower — rain
  17. swing — music
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. club — a group
  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