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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. ground — crushed
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. mate — to breed
  5. pop — music
  6. hand — in cards
  7. pop — to visit
  8. court — for sport
  9. mate — a friend
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. ground — a position
  13. court — of a king
  14. ground — the earth
  15. mate — a partner
  16. hand — help
  17. pop — soda
  18. court — of law

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