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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. chest — of your body
  5. rest — a break
  6. rest — what's left
  7. stock — shares
  8. rest — what's left
  9. wind — moving air
  10. charge — in control
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. wind — moving air
  17. charge — a price
  18. chest — of your body
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bulb — for light
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. charge — electricity
  23. stock — goods
  24. bulb — of a plant

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