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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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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: stem · file · clip · rush · dip · track · court · wax

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. rush — hurry
  6. track — to keep track
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. clip — a video
  9. dip — to sink
  10. file — a line of people
  11. track — a path
  12. stem — to come from
  13. file — a document
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. court — for sport
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. file — a tool
  18. wax — to grow
  19. clip — for paper
  20. court — of law
  21. track — a song
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. clip — to cut
  24. dip — to dunk

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