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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 116 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: mate · last · race · wind · bark · bowl · wax · current

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. last — finally
  4. race — a contest
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. race — the arms race
  9. current — happening now
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bark — to shout
  14. last — final
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. last — to go on
  17. mate — a partner
  18. current — of water
  19. mate — to breed
  20. race — humankind
  21. current — electric
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wax — to grow
  24. bowl — a dish

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