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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 cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. prune — to trim
  3. suit — in cards
  4. suit — to fit
  5. cell — a phone
  6. ground — the earth
  7. prune — to trim
  8. court — of a king
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. court — of law
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. craft — boats
  15. cell — in biology
  16. current — of water
  17. current — electric
  18. current — happening now
  19. court — for sport
  20. craft — a skill
  21. ground — a position
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. ground — crushed
  24. straw — a straw man

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