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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: court · bore · wax · straw · ruler · swing · chest · bound

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. swing — in golf
  6. court — of a king
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. chest — a box
  9. bound — tied together
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bound — certain
  13. chest — of your body
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bore — to tire
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. swing — music
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bore — to drill
  23. court — of law
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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