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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: straw · toast · mouse · row · rest · court · bark · prune

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. prune — to trim
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. row — a line
  6. bark — to shout
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. rest — what's left
  11. court — for sport
  12. toast — bread
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. row — to paddle
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. prune — to trim
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. court — of law
  21. court — of a king
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. mouse — the animal

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