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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. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. face — to point toward
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. stock — goods
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. game — a match
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. face — part of the head
  11. stock — shares
  12. game — wild animals
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. face — to confront
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. row — to paddle
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. row — a line
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. deal — to handle
  24. wax — to grow

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