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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 116 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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bass — the fish
  8. lean — to bend
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. court — for sport
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. tube — the underground
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. tube — a container
  19. court — of law
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bass — low music
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. pitch — completely
  24. wind — moving air

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