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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pit — in a race
  3. court — for sport
  4. court — of law
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. row — to paddle
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pit — a hole
  15. mate — a partner
  16. court — of a king
  17. row — a line
  18. mate — a friend
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. field — farmland
  23. mate — to breed
  24. pitcher — a jug

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