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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. press — to push
  3. face — to point toward
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. wax — to grow
  6. rash — hasty
  7. content — happy
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. face — to confront
  11. press — a publisher
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. rash — a series
  14. press — newspapers
  15. stock — goods
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. face — part of the head
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. content — the amount
  23. content — videos and posts
  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