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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. race — the arms race
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. race — humankind
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. mate — a partner
  18. tear — to rip
  19. wax — to grow
  20. mate — to breed
  21. race — a contest
  22. mate — a friend
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. racket — for tennis

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