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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. wax — to grow
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. current — of water
  9. mate — a friend
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mate — to breed
  14. cue — a signal
  15. cue — a hint
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bass — the fish
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. current — electric
  21. current — happening now
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. bass — low music

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