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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.

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: hand · fall · court · bass · perch · wax · calf · chair

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. wax — to grow
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. perch — the fish
  6. fall — to drop
  7. court — for sport
  8. fall — the season
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. court — of a king
  11. fall — to drop
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bass — the fish
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. hand — in cards
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bass — low music
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. court — of law
  23. hand — help
  24. calf — a young animal

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