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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wind — moving air
  5. court — for sport
  6. scale — size or range
  7. wax — to grow
  8. pass — a permit
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. scale — in music
  11. court — of law
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mug — to rob
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. mug — a cup
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lean — thin
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. mug — a face
  22. lean — to bend
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. scale — for weighing

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