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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. march — the month
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. spell — magic
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. march — the month
  12. court — of law
  13. court — of a king
  14. chip — to eat
  15. court — for sport
  16. mine — for digging
  17. spell — letters
  18. game — wild animals
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. march — music
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. spell — a short time
  23. game — a match
  24. chip — for betting

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