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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. race — a contest
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. race — humankind
  5. capital — money
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. key — the most important part
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. club — a group
  12. key — for a lock
  13. race — the arms race
  14. wax — to grow
  15. capital — a city
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. club — for golf
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. key — in music
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. swing — music

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