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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. court — of law
  8. court — of a king
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. prune — to trim
  11. net — for catching
  12. band — a music group
  13. court — for sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. drill — army training
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a ring
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. drill — a practice
  21. net — in sport
  22. drill — the tool
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. wax — to grow

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