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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. march — the month
  3. current — happening now
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. swing — in golf
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. march — music
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. current — of water
  10. wax — to grow
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. swing — music
  13. current — electric
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. march — the month
  17. swing — to play on
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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