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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 116 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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  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. fall — the season
  2. court — of law
  3. capital — a city
  4. wax — to grow
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. court — for sport
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. capital — money
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pit — a hole
  12. squash — to crush
  13. fall — to drop
  14. game — a match
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. squash — the sport
  17. bear — the animal
  18. pit — in a race
  19. fall — to drop
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. bear — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  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