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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: staff · sharp · mine · land · wax · wave · bowl · court

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. mine — for digging
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. land — to come down
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. land — a country
  8. wax — to grow
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. land — ground
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. court — of law
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. court — for sport
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. staff — employees
  24. bowl — to roll

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