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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.

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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: cold · wax · deal · stock · ground · suit · march · face

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. suit — clothes
  3. suit — to fit
  4. march — the month
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. face — part of the head
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stock — shares
  10. face — to point toward
  11. ground — a position
  12. march — music
  13. face — to confront
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wax — to grow
  16. march — the month
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. suit — in cards
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stock — goods
  24. wax — in the ear

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