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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: stock · straw · toast · wax · court · pitcher · suit · tear

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. wax — to grow
  3. suit — clothes
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stock — shares
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. stock — goods
  10. suit — to fit
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. toast — bread
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. tear — from crying
  16. suit — in cards
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. court — of a king
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. court — of law
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. court — for sport
  24. tear — to rip

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