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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. content — the amount
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. stock — goods
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. stock — shares
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wax — to grow
  11. content — happy
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. wax — for sculpting

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