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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.

Make a worksheet

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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. root — of a word
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — goods
  17. court — for sport
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. court — of a king
  21. root — the cause
  22. root — of a plant
  23. court — of law
  24. season — of the year

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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