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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. track — to keep track
  5. branch — a division
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wax — to grow
  8. dip — to sink
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. shower — rain
  11. shower — to wash
  12. date — the fruit
  13. stock — shares
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. track — a song
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. stock — goods
  22. track — a path
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. bowl — a dish

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