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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: sharp · land · stock · wax · spell · face · perch · mouse

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. stock — goods
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. face — part of the head
  12. stock — shares
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. sharp — clever
  15. land — ground
  16. face — to confront
  17. face — to point toward
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — magic
  20. perch — the fish
  21. land — to come down
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. land — a country

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