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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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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: stem · court · temple · wax · hand · net · swing · mouse

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. swing — in golf
  3. net — after costs
  4. court — of a king
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. hand — help
  8. court — of law
  9. net — in sport
  10. net — for catching
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. swing — to play on
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. court — for sport
  18. swing — music
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. wax — to grow
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. stem — to come from
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. hand — in cards

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