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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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Word bank
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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: land · ground · prune · racket · wound · chip · wax · swing

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. ground — a position
  4. land — ground
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. ground — crushed
  7. swing — in golf
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. swing — music
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wound — an injury
  12. land — a country
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. land — to come down
  17. wound — an injury
  18. chip — for betting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. chip — to eat
  21. prune — to trim
  22. ground — the earth
  23. swing — to play on
  24. racket — for tennis

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