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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. court — of law
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. content — happy
  5. race — humankind
  6. ground — a position
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. ground — crushed
  11. race — a contest
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. content — the amount
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. race — the arms race
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — for sport
  24. coach — a trainer

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