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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. spell — magic
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cold — an illness
  10. spell — letters
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bore — to drill
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. snap — to click
  17. spell — a short time
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wax — in the ear

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