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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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. court — for sport
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. court — of a king
  6. content — happy
  7. wake — a trail
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mate — a partner
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. content — the amount
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mate — a friend
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — of ice
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. mine — for digging
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. mate — to breed

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