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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: bay · bowl · file · court · object · tear · straw · rock

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. tear — from crying
  7. court — of a king
  8. object — an aim
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — to protest
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. file — a document
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. court — for sport
  16. tear — to rip
  17. file — a line of people
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. file — a tool
  20. rock — a stone
  21. court — of law
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. rock — to move gently

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