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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: drill · bat · current · row · swing · wax · leaves · spring

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. current — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. swing — to play on
  8. row — a line
  9. drill — the tool
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. swing — music
  14. drill — army training
  15. wax — to grow
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — of water
  21. current — happening now
  22. current — electric
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bat — the animal

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