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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. court — of a king
  4. suit — clothes
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. last — finally
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. ground — the earth
  11. court — of law
  12. last — to go on
  13. ground — a position
  14. suit — to fit
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. suit — in cards
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. last — final
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. scale — in music
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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