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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. mate — to breed
  3. face — to confront
  4. cue — a signal
  5. cue — for pool
  6. face — to point toward
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. mate — a partner
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. mate — a friend
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — help
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cue — a hint
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. face — part of the head
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wax — to grow
  23. date — the fruit
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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