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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. craft — a skill
  8. bat — the animal
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. march — music
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. wax — to grow
  13. march — the month
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. march — the month
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. craft — boats
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. cell — in biology
  23. stock — goods
  24. wax — in the ear

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