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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: court · wax · game · band · rest · tear · spell · drill

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. drill — army training
  3. court — of law
  4. band — a ring
  5. court — of a king
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. tear — from crying
  9. band — a music group
  10. game — wild animals
  11. tear — to rip
  12. rest — what's left
  13. tear — from crying
  14. spell — magic
  15. rest — a break
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. drill — a practice
  18. spell — a short time
  19. game — a match
  20. wax — to grow
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. court — for sport

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