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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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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: swing · wax · vault · pit · hand · wave · perch · cold

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. perch — the fish
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — help
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. swing — in golf
  8. wax — to grow
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. swing — music
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pit — in a race
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. vault — a safe
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. pit — a hole
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. perch — for a bird

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