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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.

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: stick · bulb · court · rush · pop · straw · cap · chest

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  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. bulb — for light
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. court — of law
  6. cap — a hat
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pop — to visit
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bulb — for light
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rush — hurry
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pop — music
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. court — of a king
  23. pop — soda
  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