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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. current — of water
  4. present — a gift
  5. wax — to grow
  6. kid — child
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. land — a country
  10. mark — a trace
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. cue — a signal
  13. present — there
  14. mine — for digging
  15. land — ground
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. cue — for pool
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. current — happening now
  21. land — to come down
  22. mark — a grade
  23. current — electric
  24. present — the time now

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