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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. march — music
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. drill — a practice
  8. march — the month
  9. kid — child
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. ball — a great time
  15. march — the month
  16. drill — army training
  17. court — for sport
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. court — of law
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. drill — the tool
  23. ball — a dance
  24. court — of a king

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