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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. shower — to wash
  7. ball — a great time
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wind — moving air
  13. sharp — clever
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. court — of a king
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. shower — rain
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. wind — moving air
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. ball — a dance
  23. court — of law
  24. court — for sport

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