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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 116 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: last · calf · leaves · wound · straw · court · squash · pound

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. last — final
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. last — to go on
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. last — finally
  11. court — of law
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. court — of a king
  14. wound — an injury
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. wound — an injury
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. squash — the sport
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. squash — to crush
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. pound — a weight

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