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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · bore · board · pitch · wax · straw · current · tube

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. tube — the underground
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. current — happening now
  6. current — electric
  7. board — a committee
  8. spring — the season
  9. current — of water
  10. bore — to drill
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. bore — to tire
  13. pitch — completely
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. board — to get on
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. spring — of water
  21. tube — a container
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. spring — a coil
  24. wax — in the ear

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