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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. court — for sport
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. pit — a hole
  5. wax — to grow
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. scale — size or range
  13. rock — music
  14. scale — in music
  15. file — a document
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. court — of law
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rash — a series
  20. file — a line of people
  21. court — of a king
  22. branch — a division
  23. file — a tool
  24. rock — a stone

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