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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 116 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. swing — music
  7. snap — to click
  8. swing — in golf
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. bat — the animal
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. swing — to play on
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. spell — letters
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. spell — magic
  22. spell — a short time
  23. bat — for baseball
  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