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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. chest — a box
  4. row — to paddle
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pit — in a race
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. kick — in football
  10. pit — a hole
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. race — a contest
  13. chest — of your body
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. current — electric
  16. pop — music
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. race — the arms race
  19. current — happening now
  20. pop — soda
  21. row — a line
  22. chest — of your body
  23. current — of water
  24. race — humankind

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