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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. charge — electricity
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. wax — to grow
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. charge — in control
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — for sport
  16. charge — a price
  17. wake — a trail
  18. dip — to sink
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. court — of law
  24. cold — not warm

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