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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. court — of law
  4. wax — to grow
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. pit — a hole
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. plane — a tool
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wake — a trail
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. court — for sport
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. pit — in a race
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. court — of a king
  24. mine — an explosive

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