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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 120 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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. kid — to tease
  3. stock — goods
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. current — electric
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. kid — child
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. current — of water
  14. stock — shares
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. pass — a permit
  20. current — happening now
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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