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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wax — to grow
  3. mine — for digging
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — a measure
  9. game — wild animals
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. court — of law
  13. lie — to recline
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. court — for sport
  17. ground — the earth
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. ground — a position
  22. drill — army training
  23. ground — crushed
  24. game — a match

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