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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. mate — to breed
  3. swing — in golf
  4. last — final
  5. perch — the fish
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. wax — to grow
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. current — electric
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. clip — to cut
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. swing — music
  16. current — happening now
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. mate — a friend
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. mate — a partner
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. swing — to play on

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