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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. staff — employees
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. date — the fruit
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fine — high quality
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. staff — a stick
  9. current — electric
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. fine — all right
  12. wind — moving air
  13. pit — a hole
  14. current — happening now
  15. staff — employees
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. row — to paddle
  19. pit — in a race
  20. current — of water
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. wax — to grow

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