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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. band — a ring
  5. stock — goods
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rule — a law
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stock — shares
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. band — a music group
  15. tear — from crying
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. tear — to rip
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. tear — from crying
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. racket — for tennis

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