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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. court — for sport
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. content — happy
  7. wax — to grow
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — boats
  10. court — of a king
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. staff — employees
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. staff — employees
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. staff — a stick
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. content — the amount
  20. court — of law
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. temple — a place of worship

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