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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. last — final
  5. last — to go on
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. pit — a hole
  8. stock — shares
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — to grow
  14. pit — in a race
  15. rest — what's left
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. last — finally
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stock — goods
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. rest — a break
  24. chip — to eat

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