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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. spell — letters
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. kid — child
  14. spell — a short time
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. spell — magic
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kid — to tease
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. racket — for tennis

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