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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. court — of a king
  3. cap — a lid
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. file — a tool
  6. rule — government
  7. mine — for digging
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. mark — a grade
  13. cap — a hat
  14. cap — of ice
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. rule — a law
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. file — a document
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. mark — a trace
  21. file — a line of people
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. wax — to grow

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