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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 120 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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. drill — a practice
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. perch — the fish
  7. stock — goods
  8. file — a document
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. wax — to grow
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — army training
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bore — to tire
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. file — a tool
  22. bore — to drill
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bore — gave birth

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