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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. stock — shares
  4. pound — a weight
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. rush — hurry
  13. squash — the sport
  14. bank — for money
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. bank — of a river
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. march — the month
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. squash — to crush
  24. stock — goods

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