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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 120 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. fork — in a road
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. stock — shares
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. wax — to grow
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. lean — to bend
  13. capital — money
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. capital — a city
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. rush — hurry
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stock — goods

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