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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. net — after costs
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. pound — a weight
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. club — for golf
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. court — of law
  9. wax — to grow
  10. charge — a price
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. club — a group
  14. charge — electricity
  15. court — for sport
  16. bat — the animal
  17. net — in sport
  18. deal — to handle
  19. net — for catching
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. club — for dancing
  23. charge — in control
  24. court — of a king

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