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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. rock — a stone
  3. court — of law
  4. kid — child
  5. pop — to visit
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. clip — to cut
  8. pop — music
  9. current — electric
  10. clip — a video
  11. pop — soda
  12. rock — music
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. clip — for paper
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. current — of water
  17. court — for sport
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — obliged
  20. court — of a king
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. current — happening now
  24. kid — to tease

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