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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. stand — to bear
  5. mate — to breed
  6. court — of law
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spell — letters
  10. wax — to grow
  11. court — for sport
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. court — of a king
  14. spell — magic
  15. key — in music
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. hand — in cards
  19. mate — a partner
  20. key — the most important part
  21. spell — a short time
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. key — for a lock

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