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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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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: track · swing · wax · ball · bark · rash · court · club

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. rash — a series
  3. track — a path
  4. ball — a great time
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. ball — a dance
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. court — of law
  9. wax — to grow
  10. swing — in golf
  11. club — a group
  12. track — to keep track
  13. swing — music
  14. rash — hasty
  15. court — for sport
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. swing — to play on
  18. club — for golf
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. club — for dancing
  21. court — of a king
  22. bark — to shout
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. bark — of a tree

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