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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: stick · dip · wake · court · lie · straw · ruler · field

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. field — for sport
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. wake — a trail
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. lie — to recline
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. field — farmland
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. court — of a king
  24. field — a subject

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