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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cap — a hat
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. capital — money
  5. net — in sport
  6. court — for sport
  7. prune — to trim
  8. spell — a short time
  9. prune — to trim
  10. court — of law
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. net — for catching
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. spell — magic
  15. cap — a lid
  16. capital — a city
  17. net — after costs
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. court — of a king
  20. cap — of ice
  21. spell — letters
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wax — in the ear

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