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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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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: mouse · ground · court · rest · wind · toast · content · wax

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. court — of a king
  4. ground — a position
  5. court — of law
  6. rest — a break
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. content — happy
  9. rest — what's left
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wind — moving air
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. ground — crushed
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. ground — the earth
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. toast — bread
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. content — the amount
  22. court — for sport
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wax — in the ear

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