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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: wound · fan · stock · deal · root · stem · face · wax

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. face — part of the head
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. root — of a word
  11. root — of a plant
  12. stock — goods
  13. root — the cause
  14. stem — to come from
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. deal — to handle
  19. face — to point toward
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. face — to confront
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. stock — shares

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