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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: court · straw · mine · cell · wax · net · safe · chip

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. cell — a phone
  3. net — after costs
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mine — for digging
  7. wax — to grow
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chip — to eat
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. chip — for betting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. net — for catching
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. net — in sport
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. court — of law
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. cell — in biology
  22. court — for sport
  23. court — of a king
  24. safe — out of danger

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