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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 116 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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. cap — of ice
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. current — electric
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — hurry
  9. mug — to rob
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. mug — a face
  17. current — of water
  18. wax — to grow
  19. current — happening now
  20. cap — a hat
  21. cap — a lid
  22. pitch — completely
  23. bat — the animal
  24. pitch — a sports field

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