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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 ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. ground — crushed
  3. stock — goods
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. wax — to grow
  8. key — the most important part
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. season — in sport
  11. race — humankind
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. race — a contest
  14. chair — a leader
  15. race — the arms race
  16. season — of the year
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — in music
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. ground — a position
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. chair — a professorship

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