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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: court · suit · tear · squash · land · charge · stem · wax

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. court — for sport
  5. land — ground
  6. suit — to fit
  7. tear — to rip
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. suit — clothes
  11. court — of law
  12. charge — in control
  13. squash — to crush
  14. stem — to come from
  15. suit — in cards
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. land — to come down
  20. court — of a king
  21. land — a country
  22. charge — electricity
  23. squash — the sport
  24. stem — of a plant

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