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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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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: court · date · rash · stock · straw · trunk · rest · pitcher

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. court — for sport
  6. rash — hasty
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. rest — what's left
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. stock — goods
  15. court — of law
  16. stock — shares
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rest — what's left
  19. court — of a king
  20. rash — a series
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. rest — a break
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stock — a soup base

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