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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 116 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. stock — shares
  3. mark — a grade
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. stock — goods
  6. staff — a stick
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mark — a trace
  9. land — ground
  10. staff — employees
  11. game — wild animals
  12. net — after costs
  13. land — a country
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. land — to come down
  17. staff — employees
  18. game — a match
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. net — for catching
  22. net — in sport
  23. wax — to grow
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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