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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. wax — to grow
  4. pit — a hole
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. court — of law
  8. court — of a king
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. pit — in a race
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. drill — army training
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. kick — in football
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. mine — for digging
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. drill — a practice
  24. prune — to trim

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