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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. chip — for betting
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. mark — a grade
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. cap — of ice
  7. net — after costs
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. rush — hurry
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — in sport
  16. squash — the sport
  17. mark — a trace
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. stock — goods
  20. squash — to crush
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. wax — to grow

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