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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. snap — to click
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wax — to grow
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. content — the amount
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. swing — to play on
  13. fork — in a road
  14. swing — music
  15. chip — for betting
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. chip — to eat
  20. bore — to drill
  21. lean — thin
  22. swing — in golf
  23. content — happy
  24. bore — to tire

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