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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: wound · pit · arm · court · wax · toast · cue · field

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cue — a hint
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. field — a subject
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cue — for pool
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. toast — bread
  10. court — of a king
  11. pit — in a race
  12. wound — an injury
  13. court — of law
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. cue — a signal
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. wax — to grow
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. court — for sport
  24. pit — a hole

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