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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. present — a gift
  3. saw — the tool
  4. ground — the earth
  5. chip — for betting
  6. wax — to grow
  7. fall — the season
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. stock — shares
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. land — a country
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. present — there
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. chip — to eat
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. land — ground
  19. ground — crushed
  20. present — the time now
  21. land — to come down
  22. saw — the tool
  23. ground — a position
  24. fall — to drop

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