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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fine — high quality
  3. bore — to drill
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. game — wild animals
  6. stock — shares
  7. current — electric
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. current — happening now
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. fine — all right
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. stock — goods
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. swing — in golf
  21. mine — for digging
  22. current — of water
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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