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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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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: pit · wake · straw · clip · bulb · lean · rest · court

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. lean — thin
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. lean — to bend
  6. rest — what's left
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. clip — a video
  9. wake — a trail
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. clip — to cut
  13. pit — a hole
  14. court — for sport
  15. pit — in a race
  16. clip — for paper
  17. court — of law
  18. bulb — for light
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. rest — a break
  23. bulb — for light
  24. court — of a king

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