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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. swing — to play on
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. branch — a division
  7. mug — to rob
  8. swing — in golf
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. mug — a face
  15. swing — music
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wind — moving air
  18. deal — to handle
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. wind — moving air
  22. mug — a cup
  23. chair — a leader
  24. stock — shares

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