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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ball · straw · rush · kick · tear · pitch · court · roll

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. ball — a dance
  4. kick — in football
  5. tear — to rip
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. court — of a king
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. tear — from crying
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. pitch — completely
  16. court — for sport
  17. roll — a cake
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. roll — a list
  21. ball — a great time
  22. rush — hurry
  23. court — of law
  24. rush — a thrill

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