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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 120 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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. court — for sport
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. court — of a king
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. saw — the tool
  9. game — a match
  10. game — wild animals
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wax — to grow
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. saw — the tool
  21. court — of law
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. chair — a leader
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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