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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. spring — the season
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. game — wild animals
  11. court — of law
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. court — of a king
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. spring — a coil
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. perch — the fish
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. spring — of water
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. game — a match

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