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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: root · current · sharp · capital · mug · mine · racket · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. mug — a cup
  4. mine — for digging
  5. current — of water
  6. wax — to grow
  7. root — of a word
  8. mug — to rob
  9. root — the cause
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. mug — a face
  16. current — happening now
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a city
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. sharp — clever
  21. root — of a plant
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. capital — money
  24. current — electric

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