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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: fork · wax · trunk · fine · fan · pit · court · kid

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. court — of a king
  3. fine — all right
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pit — in a race
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. fork — in a road
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. court — of law
  16. wax — to grow
  17. kid — child
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. court — for sport
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. kid — to tease
  22. pit — a hole
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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