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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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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: capital · date · club · lean · mouse · wax · pit · court

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. court — of a king
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pit — a hole
  7. date — the fruit
  8. club — for golf
  9. lean — thin
  10. wax — to grow
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. pit — in a race
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. lean — to bend
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. club — for dancing
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. capital — money
  20. club — a group
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. capital — a city
  24. date — on the calendar

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