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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.

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: wax · fall · capital · stock · march · arm · pitcher · pit

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. stock — goods
  3. march — music
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. wax — to grow
  12. stock — shares
  13. capital — a city
  14. fall — to drop
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. fall — to drop
  17. capital — money
  18. fall — the season
  19. march — the month
  20. pit — a hole
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. march — the month
  24. pitcher — a jug

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