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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. current — of water
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. band — a ring
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. current — happening now
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. band — a music group
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. current — electric
  18. wax — to grow
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. bulb — for light
  21. net — for catching
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. kid — child
  24. bulb — for light

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