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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 124 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. spring — the season
  3. charge — electricity
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — of law
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. bear — the animal
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bear — the animal
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. sharp — clever
  15. spring — of water
  16. charge — in control
  17. court — for sport
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. spring — a coil
  20. charge — a price
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. wax — to grow
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. sharp — with an edge

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