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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: court · row · stem · wax · net · pit · hand · current

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. net — in sport
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. hand — in cards
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. net — for catching
  8. pit — a hole
  9. current — electric
  10. pit — in a race
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. stem — to come from
  13. current — of water
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — to paddle
  16. net — after costs
  17. court — for sport
  18. current — happening now
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. hand — help
  21. court — of law
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. row — a line
  24. court — of a king

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