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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 116 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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bound — tied together
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. spell — a short time
  5. race — humankind
  6. pound — a weight
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. race — a contest
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spell — letters
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. bound — obliged
  14. race — the arms race
  15. stock — goods
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bound — certain
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stock — shares
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. spell — magic
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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