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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: bear · pitch · wax · spring · object · row · scale · court

  1. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. row — a line
  3. object — to protest
  4. bear — the animal
  5. scale — size or range
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. court — of law
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. spring — a coil
  14. object — an aim
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. bear — the animal
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. scale — in music
  23. object — a thing
  24. row — to paddle

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