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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 120 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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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: pound · current · track · tear · snap · wax · bowl · cap

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cap — a hat
  6. track — a path
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. current — of water
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. tear — to rip
  13. current — electric
  14. wax — to grow
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. snap — to click
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a lid
  19. tear — from crying
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pound — a weight
  22. current — happening now
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. pound — for dogs

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