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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. mark — a trace
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. court — of law
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. chair — a leader
  11. mark — a grade
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. court — of a king
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. court — for sport

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