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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 rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. kid — to tease
  3. current — electric
  4. file — a document
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. court — of a king
  8. current — of water
  9. lean — to bend
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. file — a line of people
  12. court — for sport
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. lean — thin
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. dip — to sink
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. wax — to grow
  19. court — of law
  20. pass — a permit
  21. current — happening now
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. kid — child

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