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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: wax · season · rush · wound · court · mug · swing · chest

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. swing — music
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mug — a face
  6. mug — a cup
  7. swing — to play on
  8. court — of law
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. court — for sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. court — of a king
  15. chest — a box
  16. swing — in golf
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rush — hurry
  20. season — of the year
  21. mug — to rob
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wax — to grow
  24. rush — a thrill

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