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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 120 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: mine · season · court · track · saw · foot · dip · straw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. season — of the year
  6. court — of law
  7. dip — to sink
  8. track — a path
  9. saw — the tool
  10. court — of a king
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. foot — a measure
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. track — a song
  17. mine — for digging
  18. track — to keep track
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. season — in sport
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. court — for sport
  24. dip — a sauce

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