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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 124 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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. rest — what's left
  4. capital — a city
  5. stock — shares
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. can — a tin
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. rest — a break
  11. stock — goods
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. club — for dancing
  15. can — a tin
  16. wax — to grow
  17. capital — money
  18. lean — to bend
  19. club — for golf
  20. rest — what's left
  21. club — a group
  22. shower — rain
  23. can — to be able to
  24. lean — thin

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