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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. stock — shares
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. bat — the animal
  6. land — ground
  7. land — to come down
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. land — a country
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. stock — goods
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bowl — a dish

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