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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: wax · bowl · fan · racket · wound · court · bay · hand

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. wound — an injury
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. court — for sport
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. court — of a king
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hand — help
  10. court — of law
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. hand — in cards

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