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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
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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: content · wax · cabinet · court · face · stock · safe · row

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stock — shares
  6. court — of a king
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. face — to confront
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. stock — goods
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. row — a line
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. content — happy
  15. row — to paddle
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — part of the head
  19. content — the amount
  20. court — of law
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. court — for sport
  24. wax — to grow

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