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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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. court — for sport
  3. charge — a price
  4. rock — music
  5. court — of a king
  6. last — finally
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. plane — a tool
  9. court — of law
  10. charge — electricity
  11. last — to go on
  12. scale — in music
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. rock — a stone
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. charge — in control
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. fork — in a road
  23. last — final
  24. scale — size or range

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