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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. kid — to tease
  3. snap — to click
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. shower — rain
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. bound — certain
  10. wax — to grow
  11. kid — child
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bound — tied together
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bound — obliged
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. wind — moving air

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