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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 120 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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. chest — of your body
  3. court — for sport
  4. club — a group
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wake — a trail
  8. mug — a cup
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. chest — a box
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. mug — a face
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. court — of a king
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. mug — to rob
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. rush — hurry
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. game — a match
  21. court — of law
  22. chest — of your body
  23. club — for golf
  24. game — wild animals

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