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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. drill — the tool
  7. file — a tool
  8. staff — employees
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a line of people
  11. staff — employees
  12. track — a path
  13. can — to be able to
  14. drill — a practice
  15. staff — a stick
  16. chest — a box
  17. track — a song
  18. can — a tin
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. wax — to grow
  21. stock — goods
  22. can — a tin
  23. drill — army training
  24. wax — for sculpting

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