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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: arm · wound · nail · game · wax · swing · pitch · wake

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. wound — an injury
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. swing — in golf
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. swing — music
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. game — wild animals
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pitch — completely
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. game — a match
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wax — to grow
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. wake — a trail

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