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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. key — for a lock
  5. current — of water
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. key — the most important part
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. current — electric
  11. kick — in football
  12. wax — to grow
  13. prune — to trim
  14. current — happening now
  15. prune — to trim
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — a match
  21. key — in music
  22. game — wild animals
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. rush — a thrill

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