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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: wax · stock · chair · race · rule · season · bowl · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. wax — to grow
  5. rule — government
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. season — of the year
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. rule — a law
  12. chair — a leader
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. prune — to trim
  15. race — the arms race
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — goods
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. race — humankind
  21. season — in sport
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. stock — shares
  24. race — a contest

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