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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: court · straw · stand · fork · staff · arm · ground · tube

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. tube — the underground
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. stand — to bear
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — employees
  13. court — of a king
  14. fork — in a road
  15. staff — a stick
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. court — for sport
  19. tube — a container
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. ground — crushed
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. straw — a straw man

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