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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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: bat · court · mine · bank · spell · straw · face · perch

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. face — to confront
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. court — for sport
  6. bank — for money
  7. face — to point toward
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. perch — the fish
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bank — of a river
  12. face — part of the head
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bat — the animal
  15. court — of law
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. spell — magic
  19. court — of a king
  20. spell — letters
  21. mine — for digging
  22. bank — for money
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. bat — for baseball

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