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

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. craft — boats
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. court — for sport
  10. wax — to grow
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. season — in sport
  13. craft — a skill
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. season — of the year
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. court — of a king
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. snap — to click
  21. kick — in football
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. court — of law
  24. arm — a part of something

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