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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: pitcher · hand · rest · current · wax · scale · content · pop

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. rest — a break
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pop — music
  8. current — happening now
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. pop — soda
  11. hand — help
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rest — what's left
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. current — of water
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. content — happy
  18. scale — in music
  19. current — electric
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rest — what's left
  22. content — the amount
  23. wax — to grow
  24. scale — for weighing

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