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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. current — of water
  3. deal — to handle
  4. current — happening now
  5. tear — from crying
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. wax — to grow
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. capital — money
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. swing — in golf
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. swing — music
  16. current — electric
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. row — a line
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. tear — to rip
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. capital — a city
  24. row — to paddle

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