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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. foot — a measure
  3. staff — employees
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. row — a line
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — to grow
  8. press — a publisher
  9. staff — a stick
  10. face — to confront
  11. press — newspapers
  12. mine — for digging
  13. face — to point toward
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. press — to push
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. face — part of the head
  18. stock — goods
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. staff — employees
  24. row — to paddle

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