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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. wax — to grow
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. land — to come down
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. land — ground
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. fork — in a road
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. perch — the fish
  23. land — a country
  24. fork — a garden tool

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