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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · spring · straw · ground · board · court

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. court — of law
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. court — of a king
  5. spring — a coil
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. spring — the season
  8. board — a committee
  9. board — to get on
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. ground — a position
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. ground — crushed
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. spring — of water
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. ground — the earth
  18. court — for sport

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