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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: court · wax · nail · straw · arm · wound · lean · sharp

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. court — of a king
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. lean — thin
  8. wax — to grow
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. lean — to bend
  13. wound — an injury
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wound — an injury
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. court — for sport
  21. sharp — clever
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. nail — on a finger

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