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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 120 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: snap · swing · stem · wax · rock · race · spring · wound

  1. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. swing — music
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. race — a contest
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. rock — a stone
  10. spring — the season
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. swing — to play on
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — an injury
  20. rock — music
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. swing — in golf
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — humankind

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