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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. swing — to play on
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. swing — in golf
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bulb — for light
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bulb — for light
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. snap — to click
  19. kick — in football
  20. mine — for digging
  21. swing — music
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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