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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rash — hasty
  5. court — for sport
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. fall — to drop
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. fall — to drop
  10. court — of a king
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. court — of law
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. fall — the season
  20. cell — a phone
  21. rash — a series
  22. kick — in football
  23. bulb — for light
  24. kick — with a leg

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