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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bear — the animal
  3. kick — in football
  4. wax — to grow
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. court — for sport
  11. root — of a plant
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. root — of a word
  14. court — of a king
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. court — of law
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. root — the cause
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bear — the animal
  24. dip — to sink

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