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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 116 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: straw · pitch · key · court · firm · squash · kid · wax

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. squash — to crush
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. key — for a lock
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. firm — a company
  9. key — the most important part
  10. firm — steady
  11. key — in music
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. kid — child
  14. firm — decided
  15. court — of law
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. court — of a king
  20. wax — to grow
  21. pitch — completely
  22. kid — to tease
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. court — for sport

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