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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 120 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 birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. ball — a great time
  3. stock — shares
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. stock — goods
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. wax — to grow
  10. tube — the underground
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. tube — a container
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. plane — a tool
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. ball — a dance
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. perch — the fish
  22. wind — moving air
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. wind — moving air

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