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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: suit · kick · branch · cold · pitcher · pop · wax · court

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. pop — music
  3. cold — an illness
  4. court — of law
  5. court — for sport
  6. kick — in football
  7. branch — a division
  8. suit — in cards
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. court — of a king
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. pop — to visit
  15. wax — to grow
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. suit — to fit
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pop — soda
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. kick — with a leg

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