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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 116 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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. capital — money
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. spring — a coil
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. ball — a great time
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. spring — the season
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. spring — of water
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wax — to grow
  15. present — there
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. present — a gift
  18. capital — a city
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. stock — goods
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. present — the time now
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. stock — shares

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