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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. current — of water
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — a trail
  10. current — happening now
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. club — for golf
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. rest — a break
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. tube — a container
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. tube — the underground
  21. current — electric
  22. club — a group
  23. wax — to grow
  24. rest — what's left

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