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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. net — in sport
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. file — a line of people
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. root — the cause
  9. net — after costs
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. root — of a plant
  12. wax — to grow
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. net — for catching
  16. court — of a king
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. root — of a word
  19. perch — the fish
  20. content — the amount
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. content — happy
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a document

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