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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. court — of a king
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. row — a line
  6. present — the time now
  7. suit — in cards
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bat — the animal
  11. row — to paddle
  12. present — there
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. suit — clothes
  17. wax — to grow
  18. court — of law
  19. tear — from crying
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. court — for sport
  23. suit — to fit
  24. present — a gift

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