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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. content — happy
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. bank — for money
  6. stock — shares
  7. track — to keep track
  8. track — a path
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wax — to grow
  12. degree — an amount
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. stock — goods
  16. toast — bread
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bank — of a river
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. bat — the animal
  23. content — the amount
  24. bank — for money

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