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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. spell — letters
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. spell — magic
  8. lie — to recline
  9. branch — a division
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. spell — a short time
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. clip — a video
  19. mark — a trace
  20. stock — goods
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bowl — a football final
  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