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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 116 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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. court — of a king
  3. stock — goods
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. rest — what's left
  6. stock — shares
  7. staff — employees
  8. march — music
  9. swing — music
  10. staff — a stick
  11. swing — to play on
  12. rest — a break
  13. swing — in golf
  14. march — the month
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. court — for sport
  17. rest — what's left
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. object — to protest
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — an aim
  23. court — of law
  24. march — the month

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