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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. date — the fruit
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. current — of water
  7. current — happening now
  8. current — electric
  9. season — of the year
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. wound — an injury
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. wax — to grow
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wound — an injury
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. plane — a tool
  24. season — in sport

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