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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. face — to confront
  4. wax — to grow
  5. face — to point toward
  6. roll — a cake
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. club — for dancing
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. board — to get on
  16. club — for golf
  17. face — part of the head
  18. roll — a list
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. club — a group
  23. board — a committee
  24. board — a flat piece

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