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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. club — a group
  3. stock — shares
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. net — for catching
  6. club — for golf
  7. ground — the earth
  8. chest — of your body
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. stock — goods
  11. net — after costs
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. sharp — clever
  16. chest — a box
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. club — for dancing
  20. ground — a position
  21. net — in sport
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. sharp — exactly

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