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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: club · rest · current · drill · rush · clip · wax · ground

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. wax — to grow
  4. ground — a position
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. current — happening now
  7. current — electric
  8. club — for golf
  9. ground — the earth
  10. club — a group
  11. drill — the tool
  12. current — of water
  13. clip — to cut
  14. drill — army training
  15. rest — a break
  16. clip — a video
  17. ground — crushed
  18. rush — hurry
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. drill — a practice
  21. clip — for paper
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — what's left
  24. club — for dancing

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