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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: stock · kick · spell · staff · content · lean · row · wax

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. spell — a short time
  4. staff — employees
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. content — the amount
  7. spell — magic
  8. stock — goods
  9. content — happy
  10. row — to paddle
  11. kick — in football
  12. spell — letters
  13. row — a line
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. staff — employees
  16. lean — thin
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. wax — to grow
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. staff — a stick
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. lean — to bend
  24. wax — for sculpting

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