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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. bound — certain
  7. wax — to grow
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. rule — government
  10. mark — a grade
  11. pop — to visit
  12. season — of the year
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. stock — shares
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. season — in sport
  19. mine — for digging
  20. rule — a law
  21. stock — goods
  22. pop — music
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. bound — tied together

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