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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — to bend
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. cold — not warm
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. court — of a king
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. bear — the animal
  16. lean — thin
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — to tire
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. bear — the animal
  22. rush — hurry
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. rush — to hurry

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