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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. race — humankind
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — to grow
  5. swing — to play on
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. last — final
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. race — the arms race
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. swing — in golf
  16. fork — in a road
  17. stock — goods
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. last — to go on
  20. last — finally
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. race — a contest
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. swing — music

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