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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. stock — shares
  4. rash — hasty
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bulb — for light
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. file — a document
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. file — a tool
  11. current — electric
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. fine — all right
  15. wax — to grow
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. fine — high quality
  18. rash — a series
  19. stock — goods
  20. bulb — for light
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. file — a line of people
  23. current — of water
  24. wax — in the ear

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