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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: scale · bay · cell · present · court · bore · wax · cabinet

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. scale — size or range
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. court — for sport
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. present — there
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. present — a gift
  12. court — of law
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. cell — in biology
  15. scale — in music
  16. bore — to drill
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. court — of a king
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. present — the time now
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bore — to tire

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