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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. fine — high quality
  6. court — of a king
  7. chip — for betting
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chip — to eat
  11. fine — all right
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — a measure
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. court — for sport
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. pitch — completely
  22. court — of law
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. trunk — of a tree

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