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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: game · race · arm · mine · swing · calf · leaves · tear

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. race — the arms race
  8. swing — music
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. swing — in golf
  13. mine — for digging
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. race — humankind
  17. race — a contest
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. game — wild animals
  20. tear — to rip
  21. swing — to play on
  22. game — a match
  23. tear — from crying
  24. game — a kind of play

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