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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. saw — the tool
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. band — a music group
  5. wax — to grow
  6. band — a ring
  7. current — happening now
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wound — an injury
  10. current — of water
  11. row — to paddle
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. club — a group
  17. key — the most important part
  18. row — a line
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. club — for dancing
  21. key — in music
  22. club — for golf
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. current — electric

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