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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pop — to visit
  5. mark — a trace
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. pop — music
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a grade
  10. current — of water
  11. current — electric
  12. wax — to grow
  13. stem — to come from
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. hand — in cards
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. craft — a skill
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. craft — boats
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. hand — help
  24. current — happening now

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