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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: march · court · lash · wax · mouse · stock · mine · cell

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. cell — a phone
  4. mine — for digging
  5. stock — shares
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. march — the month
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. wax — to grow
  19. march — the month
  20. court — for sport
  21. stock — goods
  22. court — of law
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. march — music

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