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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. wax — to grow
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bat — the animal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. court — of a king
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. court — for sport
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — tied together
  16. court — of law
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bound — certain
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. foot — a measure
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — not warm

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