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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. cap — a hat
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cap — a lid
  5. current — electric
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. mate — a partner
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. object — an aim
  10. wind — moving air
  11. object — a thing
  12. object — to protest
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wind — moving air
  16. current — happening now
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cap — of ice
  19. mate — a friend
  20. spring — a coil
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — of water
  24. wax — to grow

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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