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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 112 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 · hand · ground · cell · saw · race · season · rush

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. race — humankind
  4. ground — a position
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wax — to grow
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. race — the arms race
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ground — the earth
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. hand — in cards
  15. race — a contest
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — help
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — in sport
  20. rush — hurry
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. cell — a phone

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