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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · wax · kid · stock · craft · ruler

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. mate — to breed
  4. kid — to tease
  5. mate — a partner
  6. stock — goods
  7. craft — boats
  8. mate — a friend
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. craft — a skill
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. kid — child
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. wax — to grow
  17. stock — shares
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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