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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. snap — to click
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. kid — to tease
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. tube — the underground
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. saw — the tool
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. tube — a container
  16. saw — the tool
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. firm — a company
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. firm — steady
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. firm — decided
  24. kid — child

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