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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — the season
  3. drill — the tool
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. rule — a law
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. drill — army training
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. court — for sport
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wax — to grow
  15. drill — a practice
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. court — of law
  19. bass — the fish
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bass — low music
  22. rule — government
  23. court — of a king
  24. racket — for tennis

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