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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 · wax · straw · firm · kid · fork · roll · pound

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. firm — a company
  3. firm — decided
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pound — a weight
  8. firm — steady
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. roll — a cake
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wax — to grow
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. kid — child
  17. roll — a list
  18. fork — in a road
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. pound — to hit hard

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