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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. cap — a hat
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. plane — a tool
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bore — to tire
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bore — to drill
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. court — of law
  11. court — for sport
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cap — of ice
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. ball — a great time
  23. court — of a king
  24. ball — a round shape

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