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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: court · wax · capital · row · fork · vault · rest · track

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. court — of a king
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. fork — in a road
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. track — to keep track
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. court — for sport
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. track — a path
  15. rest — a break
  16. row — a line
  17. rest — what's left
  18. track — a song
  19. capital — money
  20. vault — a safe
  21. court — of law
  22. capital — a city
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wax — to grow

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