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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: wax · swing · race · spring · club · coach · key · row

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. swing — music
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. row — a line
  7. club — a group
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — in music
  10. wax — to grow
  11. race — humankind
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. race — a contest
  16. key — the most important part
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spring — the season
  20. club — for dancing
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. club — for golf
  23. race — the arms race
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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