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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. wax — to grow
  3. court — for sport
  4. bound — tied together
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. spell — magic
  10. court — of law
  11. spell — letters
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. net — for catching
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. net — in sport
  18. court — of a king
  19. bound — obliged
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bound — certain

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