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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bulb — for light
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. kick — in football
  7. capital — a city
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bulb — for light
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. bear — the animal
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bear — the animal
  20. court — of law
  21. capital — money
  22. court — of a king
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. press — a publisher

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