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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. object — to protest
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. bound — certain
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. court — of law
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. object — a thing
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. roll — a cake
  13. bound — tied together
  14. court — of a king
  15. roll — a list
  16. bound — obliged
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. stand — to bear
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. object — an aim
  23. court — for sport
  24. stand — on your feet

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