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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mark — a grade
  3. stock — goods
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. court — of law
  6. wax — to grow
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. court — of a king
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pass — a permit
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. prune — to trim
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. mark — a trace
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stock — shares
  20. court — for sport
  21. date — the fruit
  22. chest — of your body
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. stock — a soup base

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