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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: band · current · race · wax · season · sharp · pitcher · field

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wax — to grow
  5. race — humankind
  6. field — farmland
  7. band — a ring
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. race — a contest
  11. current — electric
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. field — a subject
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — of water
  18. season — of the year
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. field — for sport
  21. band — a music group
  22. race — the arms race
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. pitcher — a jug

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