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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. date — the fruit
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. hand — help
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rule — a law
  9. stock — goods
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. ball — a great time
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. rule — government
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — army training
  19. drill — a practice
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. ball — a dance
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. hand — in cards

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