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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 116 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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — a stone
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ball — a dance
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. ball — a great time
  8. dip — to sink
  9. row — a line
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. rock — music
  14. court — of a king
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. court — for sport
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. court — of law
  20. rest — what's left
  21. row — to paddle
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  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