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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. game — wild animals
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. mate — to breed
  7. game — a match
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. mate — a partner
  10. track — a song
  11. track — a path
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. mate — a friend
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. track — to keep track
  21. court — of law
  22. plane — a tool
  23. court — for sport
  24. plane — in geometry

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