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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pop — music
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. perch — the fish
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — steady
  11. swing — to play on
  12. pop — soda
  13. firm — a company
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — to grow
  19. swing — music
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. swing — in golf
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. pop — to visit

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