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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 supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. spell — letters
  5. file — a document
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. stock — shares
  9. file — a tool
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. file — a line of people
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. vault — a safe
  15. present — there
  16. perch — the fish
  17. spell — magic
  18. wax — to grow
  19. present — the time now
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. spell — a short time
  23. present — a gift
  24. wake — a trail

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