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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 124 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. rest — what's left
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. rest — a break
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. court — for sport
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wound — an injury
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. lean — to bend
  15. court — of law
  16. rest — what's left
  17. lean — thin
  18. clip — for paper
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. bay — a horse colour

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