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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fork · current · wind · pitcher · wax · last · tear · track

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. track — a song
  8. last — final
  9. tear — to rip
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. last — to go on
  12. current — happening now
  13. wax — to grow
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. track — a path
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. current — of water
  19. last — finally
  20. wind — moving air
  21. fork — in a road
  22. tear — from crying
  23. track — to keep track
  24. current — electric

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