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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: date · squash · stick · face · stock · bore · mug · wax

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. mug — a face
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. wax — to grow
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bore — to drill
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. bore — to tire
  18. stock — goods
  19. stock — shares
  20. date — the fruit
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — to crush
  23. face — to confront
  24. mug — to rob

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