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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: lie · stock · chest · spring · wax · racket · rash · mate

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. mate — a partner
  3. spring — the season
  4. chest — of your body
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. mate — to breed
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. lie — to recline
  15. mate — a friend
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rash — hasty
  18. stock — shares
  19. stock — goods
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. spring — of water
  22. rash — a series
  23. chest — a box
  24. rash — on the skin

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