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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. court — of law
  5. bat — the animal
  6. race — humankind
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. chest — a box
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chest — of your body
  11. court — for sport
  12. race — a contest
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. chest — of your body
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. foot — a measure
  20. race — the arms race
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. court — of a king
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. fan — a supporter

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