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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. present — there
  4. present — a gift
  5. present — the time now
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. season — of the year
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. content — happy
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bore — to drill
  17. content — the amount
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of law
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. court — of a king
  22. branch — a division
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. season — in 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