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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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Word bank
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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — a trail
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. swing — in golf
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. dip — to sink
  10. wound — an injury
  11. snap — to click
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wound — an injury
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. swing — to play on
  18. wax — to grow
  19. chest — a box
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. chest — of your body
  23. fork — in a road
  24. dip — a sauce

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