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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. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. current — electric
  4. current — of water
  5. wax — to grow
  6. current — happening now
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. capital — a city
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cap — of ice
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. capital — money
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. cap — a hat
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. stock — goods
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. kick — in football
  23. cap — a lid
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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