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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. firm — decided
  4. court — of law
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. firm — a company
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. craft — a skill
  10. court — for sport
  11. rock — music
  12. craft — boats
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. firm — steady
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. court — of a king
  24. tear — from crying

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