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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. court — of a king
  3. snap — to click
  4. staff — employees
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. swing — to play on
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. staff — employees
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. court — of law
  13. race — the arms race
  14. staff — a stick
  15. swing — in golf
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. wax — to grow
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. swing — music
  22. race — humankind
  23. court — for sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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