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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. court — of a king
  3. prune — to trim
  4. clip — to cut
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a line of people
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. cue — for pool
  10. ball — a dance
  11. file — a tool
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. court — of law
  15. cue — a signal
  16. court — for sport
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. clip — a video
  19. toast — bread
  20. ball — a great time
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. cue — a hint
  24. prune — to trim

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