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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. mark — a grade
  3. court — for sport
  4. swing — to play on
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. scale — in music
  8. root — of a plant
  9. scale — size or range
  10. root — of a word
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — the underground
  13. court — of law
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. root — the cause
  17. wax — to grow
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. mark — a trace
  20. date — the fruit
  21. court — of a king
  22. swing — music
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. scale — for weighing

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