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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · current · present · chest · scale · nail · kid · wax

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. current — of water
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. present — there
  7. kid — to tease
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. scale — size or range
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. kid — child
  13. present — the time now
  14. chest — of your body
  15. scale — in music
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. current — happening now
  19. present — a gift
  20. shower — to wash
  21. wax — to grow
  22. chest — a box
  23. current — electric
  24. scale — for weighing

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