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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. stock — shares
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. stock — goods
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. hand — help
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. rash — hasty
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — a practice
  19. rash — a series
  20. drill — army training
  21. hand — in cards
  22. wax — to grow
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. cabinet — ministers

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