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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 116 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cue — for pool
  4. track — a path
  5. wax — to grow
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. shower — to wash
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. cue — a signal
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. snap — to click
  13. cue — a hint
  14. shower — rain
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — magic
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. rock — a stone
  19. cold — not warm
  20. spell — letters
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. track — a song
  23. cold — an illness
  24. rock — music

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