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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 120 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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. lean — to bend
  3. mate — a partner
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — the amount
  6. current — electric
  7. swing — music
  8. current — of water
  9. mate — to breed
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. content — happy
  13. swing — in golf
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. wax — to grow
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. fork — in a road
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. current — happening now
  21. lean — thin
  22. mate — a friend
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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