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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 · rest · straw · swing · arm · jam · prune · bark

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. swing — in golf
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. bark — to shout
  6. court — of law
  7. rest — a break
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. swing — to play on
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. rest — what's left
  16. court — of a king
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. court — for sport
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. rest — what's left
  21. swing — music
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. prune — to trim
  24. jam — in traffic

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