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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. season — in sport
  3. pop — soda
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. track — a song
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. track — to keep track
  9. pop — to visit
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — of law
  12. mate — a friend
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. track — a path
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. pop — music
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. court — for sport
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pitcher — a jug

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