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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — in control
  4. rash — a series
  5. swing — music
  6. charge — a price
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. court — of a king
  11. wax — to grow
  12. bound — obliged
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. rash — hasty
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. bound — tied together
  20. bound — certain
  21. swing — to play on
  22. court — of law
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. swing — in golf

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