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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. current — of water
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wax — to grow
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. current — electric
  7. rest — what's left
  8. hand — help
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. tear — from crying
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. lean — thin
  16. tear — to rip
  17. current — happening now
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. hand — in cards
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. lean — to bend

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