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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: wax · land · snap · race · pit · pitch · net · wound

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. land — ground
  4. race — humankind
  5. pitch — completely
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. net — after costs
  10. race — a contest
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pit — in a race
  15. land — to come down
  16. pit — a hole
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. land — a country
  19. snap — to click
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. net — for catching
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. net — in sport

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