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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.

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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: bore · court · chair · mug · spring · saw · straw · leaves

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. spring — a coil
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. mug — a face
  10. court — of a king
  11. mug — to rob
  12. chair — a leader
  13. bore — to drill
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. mug — a cup
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. saw — the tool
  18. court — for sport
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. spring — the season
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bore — to tire
  23. saw — the tool
  24. spring — of water

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