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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: court · straw · foot · bark · fan · mug · trunk · root

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. court — for sport
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. root — of a plant
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. root — of a word
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. mug — a cup
  12. court — of law
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. court — of a king
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. mug — to rob
  20. root — the cause
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. foot — a measure
  24. bark — to shout

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