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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: bark · track · can · wax · spell · date · stock · board

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. spell — letters
  3. track — a song
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. stock — shares
  6. date — the fruit
  7. track — to keep track
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. can — to be able to
  10. can — a tin
  11. bark — to shout
  12. can — a tin
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. board — to get on
  16. spell — magic
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. track — a path
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — to grow
  22. spell — a short time
  23. board — a committee
  24. date — on the calendar

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