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

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. race — the arms race
  3. wax — to grow
  4. spring — a coil
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. lean — thin
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wind — moving air
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. lean — to bend
  13. spring — the season
  14. race — a contest
  15. court — for sport
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. court — of law
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. spring — of water
  21. court — of a king
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. wind — moving air
  24. race — humankind

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