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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. court — of a king
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. spell — magic
  5. court — for sport
  6. can — a tin
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. spell — letters
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. craft — boats
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bass — low music
  17. court — of law
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bulb — for light
  21. spell — a short time
  22. shower — rain
  23. bulb — for light
  24. straw — dry grass

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