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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. chair — a leader
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. court — for sport
  6. wax — to grow
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. squash — the sport
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. lie — to recline
  12. court — of a king
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. rule — government
  16. court — of law
  17. scale — in music
  18. rule — a law
  19. scale — size or range
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. rule — to rule out

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