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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: prune · bowl · degree · straw · stick · mate · court · fall

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  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. court — of a king
  2. degree — an amount
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. mate — a friend
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. fall — the season
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. degree — from a university
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. prune — to trim
  14. degree — temperature
  15. fall — to drop
  16. court — for sport
  17. fall — to drop
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. court — of law
  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