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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  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. race — humankind
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. court — for sport
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. net — for catching
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bear — the animal
  16. race — the arms race
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. stock — shares
  19. court — of a king
  20. race — a contest
  21. pass — a permit
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. court — of law
  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