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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: hand · wax · fan · temple · hide · current · last · drill

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. hand — help
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. current — electric
  7. last — finally
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — to grow
  10. drill — army training
  11. drill — a practice
  12. hand — in cards
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. current — of water
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. drill — the tool
  20. last — final
  21. current — happening now
  22. last — to go on
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — to cool the air

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