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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: rock · fan · hand · present · squash · wax · capital · stock

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. stock — shares
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. present — the time now
  6. capital — money
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. present — there
  10. squash — to crush
  11. squash — the sport
  12. hand — in cards
  13. capital — a city
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. rock — music
  20. rock — a stone
  21. stock — goods
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. hand — help

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