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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. current — electric
  3. spring — of water
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. spring — the season
  7. wax — to grow
  8. court — of law
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. tear — from crying
  12. rest — what's left
  13. lie — to recline
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. current — happening now
  16. current — of water
  17. court — for sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. court — of a king
  20. tear — to rip
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — a trail
  24. spring — a coil

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