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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. scale — in music
  6. net — after costs
  7. file — a document
  8. key — for a lock
  9. court — of law
  10. key — in music
  11. mug — a face
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. scale — size or range
  14. net — for catching
  15. shower — to wash
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. court — for sport
  19. shower — rain
  20. key — the most important part
  21. wax — to grow
  22. court — of a king
  23. mug — to rob
  24. net — in sport

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