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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 · march · saw · mate · stock · ground · squash · bay

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. march — the month
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. squash — the sport
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — a position
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. march — music
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. wax — to grow
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stock — goods
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. stock — shares
  20. mate — a friend
  21. ground — the earth
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. march — the month

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