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

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. chip — for betting
  3. ground — the earth
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. vault — a safe
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. ground — a position
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — shares
  14. fall — to drop
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. fall — the season
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. rash — a series
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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