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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. wax — to grow
  8. club — for golf
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. swing — to play on
  12. mark — a grade
  13. snap — to click
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — in golf
  19. game — a match
  20. club — a group
  21. club — for dancing
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. game — wild animals
  24. hide — to keep secret

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