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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stock — goods
  6. cold — not warm
  7. craft — a skill
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. stock — shares
  13. drill — army training
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. drill — a practice
  20. craft — boats
  21. drill — the tool
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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