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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. stock — shares
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — to grow
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. degree — from a university
  11. ground — a position
  12. degree — an amount
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. stock — goods
  18. toast — bread
  19. ground — crushed
  20. fork — in a road
  21. prune — to trim
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. ground — the earth
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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