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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. track — a path
  5. court — for sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bass — the fish
  9. track — to keep track
  10. degree — temperature
  11. wind — moving air
  12. face — part of the head
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. face — to confront
  16. track — a song
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. face — to point toward
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bass — low music
  21. degree — from a university
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. court — of law
  24. wind — to turn a key

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