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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. stem — to come from
  3. present — a gift
  4. court — for sport
  5. present — the time now
  6. present — there
  7. court — of law
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. shower — rain
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pop — music
  21. court — of a king
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. pop — soda
  24. stem — of a plant

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