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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: pit · shower · bore · court · hand · bowl · ruler · swing

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bore — to tire
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — in golf
  6. court — of law
  7. hand — in cards
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. court — for sport
  10. bore — to drill
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. hand — help
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. court — of a king
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pit — a hole
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. pit — in a race
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — rain

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