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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 · shower · roll · court · foot · fork · rush · saw

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. shower — to wash
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. court — of law
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. roll — a cake
  11. court — of a king
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. court — for sport
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. shower — rain
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. foot — a measure
  22. saw — the tool
  23. roll — a list
  24. foot — the bottom

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