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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. file — a tool
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. mark — a trace
  7. file — a document
  8. court — of a king
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. ball — a great time
  11. file — a line of people
  12. wax — to grow
  13. mark — a grade
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to sink
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. foot — a measure
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. court — of law
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. court — for sport

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