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

Word bank: tear · wind · net · race · wave · swing

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — after costs
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. race — a contest
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. tear — from crying
  9. swing — music
  10. swing — to play on
  11. tear — from crying
  12. swing — in golf
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. race — the arms race
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wind — moving air
  17. race — humankind
  18. net — for catching

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