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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 ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. kick — in football
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. current — electric
  7. wax — to grow
  8. current — of water
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. tear — from crying
  12. root — the cause
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. current — happening now
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. root — of a plant
  22. kid — to tease
  23. kid — child
  24. leaves — to go away

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