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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 120 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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. cue — a hint
  3. chest — of your body
  4. court — of law
  5. court — of a king
  6. court — for sport
  7. cue — a signal
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. kid — to tease
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. squash — to crush
  16. saw — the tool
  17. kid — child
  18. saw — the tool
  19. rule — a law
  20. rule — government
  21. squash — the sport
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. cue — for pool
  24. chest — of your body

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