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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. wax — to grow
  7. staff — employees
  8. charge — in control
  9. staff — a stick
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. stock — shares
  12. last — finally
  13. charge — a price
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. game — a match
  16. last — to go on
  17. charge — electricity
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. stock — goods
  21. last — final
  22. staff — employees
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. nail — for a hammer

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