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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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. wax — in the ear
  3. club — for dancing
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. snap — to click
  7. pitch — completely
  8. suit — clothes
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. club — for golf
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. wax — to grow
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. bat — the animal
  15. suit — in cards
  16. club — a group
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. suit — to fit
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bat — in an idiom

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