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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. scale — in music
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. wax — to grow
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stock — goods
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. field — for sport
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. mate — a friend
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. stock — shares
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. scale — size or range
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. nail — for a hammer

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