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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. firm — a company
  3. can — to be able to
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. season — in sport
  6. court — of law
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. wound — an injury
  9. firm — decided
  10. court — for sport
  11. firm — steady
  12. can — a tin
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — humankind
  17. can — a tin
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. race — the arms race
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pitch — completely
  23. season — of the year
  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