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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. court — for sport
  3. craft — a skill
  4. court — of a king
  5. suit — to fit
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. suit — clothes
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — a subject
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. court — of law
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. field — farmland
  14. rest — what's left
  15. suit — in cards
  16. rest — what's left
  17. craft — boats
  18. straw — a straw man

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