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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stock · bark · spell · chip · wound · pass · wax · wind

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wind — moving air
  3. spell — magic
  4. pass — a permit
  5. wind — moving air
  6. stock — shares
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. bark — to shout
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. wound — an injury
  16. chip — for betting
  17. spell — letters
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. stock — goods
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chip — to eat
  24. wind — to turn a key

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