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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. suit — clothes
  4. kid — child
  5. fine — high quality
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. kid — to tease
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cold — not warm
  15. scale — size or range
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. fine — all right
  20. stock — shares
  21. scale — in music
  22. suit — in cards
  23. stock — goods
  24. suit — to fit

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