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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: present · court · calf · prune · fall · straw · ball · chair

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — there
  5. fall — the season
  6. prune — to trim
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. court — of law
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. court — for sport
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. ball — a dance
  17. court — of a king
  18. prune — to trim
  19. ball — a great time
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. present — the time now
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — to sit on

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