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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. object — to protest
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. squash — to crush
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. squash — the sport
  10. court — of law
  11. kick — in football
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. court — for sport
  14. cold — an illness
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cold — not warm
  21. object — an aim
  22. object — a thing
  23. court — of a king
  24. cold — the Cold War

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