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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. deal — to handle
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wound — an injury
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bear — the animal
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. prune — to trim
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. prune — the fruit

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