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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. field — for sport
  5. current — of water
  6. date — the fruit
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. can — a tin
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. current — electric
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. can — to be able to
  14. current — happening now
  15. field — a subject
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. can — a tin
  19. field — farmland
  20. cell — a phone
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. sharp — clever
  24. cell — in a prison

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