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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. season — in sport
  3. capital — a city
  4. season — of the year
  5. capital — money
  6. court — for sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bark — to shout
  13. court — of a king
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. march — the month
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rush — hurry
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. court — of law

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