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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. scale — size or range
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mate — a friend
  10. scale — in music
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. clip — a video
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. court — of a king
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lean — to bend
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. mate — a partner
  23. court — of law
  24. bulb — for light

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