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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. court — of a king
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. bat — the animal
  6. court — for sport
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bear — the animal
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. sharp — clever
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bound — certain
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. court — of law
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lie — to recline
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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