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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. current — happening now
  6. file — a line of people
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. board — to get on
  10. file — a tool
  11. current — of water
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. file — a document
  14. bat — the animal
  15. season — in sport
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. capital — a city
  21. current — electric
  22. can — to be able to
  23. capital — money
  24. board — a committee

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