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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  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. swing — music
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. kick — in football
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bound — obliged
  6. race — a contest
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. cold — not warm
  11. swing — to play on
  12. foot — a measure
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bound — tied together
  16. swing — in golf
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bound — certain
  22. wax — to grow
  23. cold — an illness
  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