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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. current — of water
  3. current — electric
  4. last — to go on
  5. current — happening now
  6. mate — a friend
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — farmland
  9. court — for sport
  10. cap — of ice
  11. kid — child
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. cap — a hat
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. wax — to grow
  17. court — of law
  18. court — of a king
  19. mate — to breed
  20. last — finally
  21. mate — a partner
  22. kid — to tease
  23. last — final
  24. cap — a lid

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