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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. land — a country
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. suit — clothes
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. land — ground
  8. court — of a king
  9. land — to come down
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. suit — to fit
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. swing — music
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. pit — a hole
  17. suit — in cards
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. mine — for digging
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — to play on
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pit — in a race

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