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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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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: rock · cue · row · lash · court · capital · patient · straw

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. rock — a stone
  5. court — for sport
  6. cue — a signal
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cue — for pool
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. capital — a city
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. capital — money
  14. court — of a king
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. row — a line
  17. cue — a hint
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. court — of law
  21. rock — music
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. row — to paddle

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