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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: spring · pit · cabinet · object · straw · perch · band · court

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. court — of a king
  4. spring — of water
  5. court — of law
  6. object — a thing
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. court — for sport
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pit — a hole
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. object — to protest
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. spring — the season
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. object — an aim
  24. band — a ring

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