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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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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. rash — a series
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — in control
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. rash — hasty
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. court — of law
  16. foot — a measure
  17. court — of a king
  18. charge — electricity

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