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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. staff — employees
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. roll — a cake
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. kick — in football
  10. snap — to click
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. roll — a list
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. wax — to grow
  19. game — a match
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. game — wild animals
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. staff — employees
  24. pitcher — a jug

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