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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. court — of law
  3. track — to keep track
  4. court — of a king
  5. club — for dancing
  6. track — a song
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. wax — to grow
  10. cold — not warm
  11. spell — magic
  12. snap — to click
  13. spell — a short time
  14. rule — government
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. club — for golf
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. track — a path
  19. spell — letters
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. rule — a law
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. court — for sport
  24. cold — the Cold War

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