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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. court — of a king
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. court — for sport
  5. suit — clothes
  6. rash — a series
  7. capital — a city
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. suit — to fit
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — an amount
  13. capital — money
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. rash — hasty
  16. content — the amount
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. content — happy
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. court — of law
  22. suit — in cards
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. degree — from a university

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