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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 116 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: degree · stem · mate · rest · swing · spring · race · wave

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. swing — music
  3. spring — the season
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. mate — to breed
  6. race — humankind
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. degree — from a university
  10. spring — a coil
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mate — a partner
  15. rest — a break
  16. mate — a friend
  17. stem — to come from
  18. rest — what's left
  19. swing — in golf
  20. race — the arms race
  21. race — a contest
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. rest — what's left
  24. spring — of water

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