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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 116 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: field · spring · pitcher · bore · wax · hide · lash · court

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. court — of law
  3. field — farmland
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. wax — to grow
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. spring — of water
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — for sport
  13. spring — a coil
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. bore — to drill
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. spring — the season
  23. bore — to tire
  24. court — of a king

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