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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. court — for sport
  3. mate — a friend
  4. court — of law
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. row — a line
  7. root — of a plant
  8. squash — to crush
  9. court — of a king
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. row — to paddle
  13. mate — to breed
  14. squash — the sport
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. root — the cause
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. root — of a word
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ground — the earth

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