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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. court — for sport
  3. race — a contest
  4. club — for dancing
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. race — humankind
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bound — certain
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. bound — obliged
  12. race — the arms race
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. charge — a price
  15. charge — in control
  16. club — for golf
  17. season — in sport
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. charge — electricity
  21. court — of law
  22. club — a group
  23. season — of the year
  24. court — of a king

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