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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. net — after costs
  4. spell — magic
  5. wax — to grow
  6. spell — letters
  7. staff — a stick
  8. hand — help
  9. net — in sport
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. staff — employees
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. staff — employees
  16. spell — a short time
  17. net — for catching
  18. stock — shares
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. stock — goods
  22. suit — clothes
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. hand — in cards

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