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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. spring — the season
  10. row — to paddle
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. row — a line
  13. stock — shares
  14. spring — a coil
  15. branch — a division
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stock — goods
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. spring — of water
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. branch — of a bank

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