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

Word bank: court · cap · cell · fall · pit · straw · staff · snap

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. staff — a stick
  3. cap — a hat
  4. snap — to click
  5. pit — in a race
  6. staff — employees
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — a hole
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cap — a lid
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. fall — to drop
  16. staff — employees
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. court — for sport
  20. fall — to drop
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cell — a phone
  23. fall — the season
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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