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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: pound · wax · wave · sharp · race · stand · spring · swing

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. spring — a coil
  4. swing — in golf
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. swing — to play on
  8. spring — the season
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. race — a contest
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. stand — to bear
  16. pound — a weight
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. swing — music
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. spring — of water
  21. race — humankind
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. race — the arms race
  24. wax — for sculpting

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