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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 water is too ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. bore — to tire
  4. cue — a hint
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cold — an illness
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. current — happening now
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. cue — a signal
  15. current — electric
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wound — an injury
  19. current — of water
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cue — for pool

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