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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. game — a match
  4. bark — to shout
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. game — wild animals
  7. foot — a measure
  8. court — of a king
  9. cue — a signal
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. field — farmland
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. court — of law
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. cue — a hint
  22. court — for sport
  23. cue — for pool
  24. ball — a great time

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