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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: straw · firm · court · sharp · cold · calf · hide · club

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. court — of law
  4. court — for sport
  5. club — for golf
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. sharp — clever
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. club — for dancing
  11. firm — steady
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — an illness
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. cold — not warm
  19. court — of a king
  20. firm — decided
  21. club — a group
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. firm — a company

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