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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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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. prune — to trim
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. ground — crushed
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. wax — to grow
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. saw — the tool
  10. ground — the earth
  11. kick — in football
  12. saw — the tool
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. current — of water
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. current — happening now
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. prune — to trim
  24. ground — a position

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