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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. spring — the season
  4. club — a group
  5. prune — to trim
  6. chair — a leader
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. spring — of water
  14. can — a tin
  15. rash — hasty
  16. club — for golf
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rash — a series
  19. club — for dancing
  20. can — to be able to
  21. spring — a coil
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. can — a tin
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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