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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: bay · court · field · drill · fan · track · fall · wax

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. wax — to grow
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. drill — a practice
  5. fall — to drop
  6. court — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — for sport
  9. track — to keep track
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. track — a path
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. field — a subject
  19. fall — the season
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. track — a song
  22. drill — the tool
  23. court — of law
  24. drill — army training

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