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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. wax — to grow
  4. snap — to click
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — to handle
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bound — certain
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. scale — in music
  13. spell — a short time
  14. scale — size or range
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. spell — magic
  19. bound — obliged
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. bound — tied together
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. spell — letters
  24. wax — for sculpting

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