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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 120 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. pitch — completely
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. squash — the sport
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. drill — army training
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. drill — the tool
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. row — a line
  17. squash — to crush
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. court — of law
  20. row — to paddle
  21. court — for sport
  22. stem — to come from
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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