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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. court — for sport
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. court — of a king
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. kid — child
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — to tease
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. court — of law
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. toast — bread
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. season — of the year
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. wax — to grow

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