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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. kid — child
  3. race — the arms race
  4. wind — moving air
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. race — a contest
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — to play on
  18. stem — to come from
  19. wax — to grow
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. race — humankind
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. kid — to tease

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