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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · court · wax · chest · present · deal

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. tear — from crying
  3. court — for sport
  4. chest — of your body
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. chest — of your body
  7. tear — to rip
  8. present — the time now
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. present — a gift
  13. tear — from crying
  14. court — of a king
  15. wax — to grow
  16. court — of law
  17. present — there
  18. deal — to handle

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