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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. lie — to recline
  5. hand — help
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. can — a tin
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. can — to be able to
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. can — a tin
  14. ball — a great time
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. hand — in cards
  20. wax — to grow
  21. stem — to come from
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. ball — a dance
  24. lie — an untruth

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