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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bulb — for light
  6. stock — shares
  7. land — a country
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. land — to come down
  10. cell — a phone
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cell — in biology
  15. stock — goods
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. wax — to grow
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. rest — a break

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