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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. swing — to play on
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. court — for sport
  7. swing — in golf
  8. court — of a king
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — there
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cell — a phone
  15. swing — music
  16. wax — to grow
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. present — a gift
  20. court — of law
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. cell — in biology
  24. leaves — to go away

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