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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: wax · leaves · rule · mine · court · pound · bay · shower

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of a king
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. wax — to grow
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — rain
  20. rule — a law
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. rule — government
  23. shower — to wash
  24. mine — for digging

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