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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. wax — to grow
  6. court — of law
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. craft — a skill
  11. court — of a king
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. content — the amount
  16. season — of the year
  17. court — for sport
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. craft — boats
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. pound — a weight
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. content — happy
  24. kick — in football

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