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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. court — of a king
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. present — a gift
  8. tube — the underground
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. present — the time now
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. chest — a box
  14. court — of law
  15. swing — to play on
  16. can — a tin
  17. swing — in golf
  18. swing — music
  19. chest — of your body
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. tube — a container
  22. present — there
  23. court — for sport
  24. chest — of your body

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