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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. court — of law
  3. board — to get on
  4. mug — a cup
  5. spring — a coil
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. march — the month
  8. court — of a king
  9. march — music
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. mug — a face
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. wax — to grow
  15. board — a committee
  16. mug — to rob
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. spring — the season
  19. march — the month
  20. spell — magic
  21. court — for sport
  22. spell — a short time
  23. wake — a trail
  24. spell — letters

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