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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 116 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: last · field · band · firm · shower · current · present · wax

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. current — electric
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. field — a subject
  6. last — finally
  7. present — there
  8. last — final
  9. current — of water
  10. wax — to grow
  11. shower — rain
  12. firm — decided
  13. band — a music group
  14. current — happening now
  15. present — the time now
  16. field — for sport
  17. firm — steady
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. field — farmland
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. present — a gift
  22. firm — a company
  23. last — to go on
  24. wax — in the ear

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