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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 120 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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bound — certain
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. wax — to grow
  11. degree — an amount
  12. mine — for digging
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mark — a grade
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bound — tied together
  19. mark — a trace
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. wax — in the ear

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