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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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Word bank
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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. track — a path
  3. court — of law
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. scale — size or range
  6. land — a country
  7. spell — magic
  8. court — for sport
  9. track — a song
  10. scale — in music
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. court — of a king
  13. track — to keep track
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. spell — letters
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. wax — to grow
  22. land — ground
  23. spell — a short time
  24. land — to come down

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