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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bound — certain
  4. file — a tool
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. object — a thing
  10. stock — goods
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. stock — shares
  13. file — a line of people
  14. object — an aim
  15. face — to point toward
  16. face — to confront
  17. file — a document
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. face — part of the head
  20. object — to protest
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bound — tied together

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