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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 120 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. hand — help
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. content — the amount
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. wax — to grow
  16. clip — a video
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. content — happy
  22. plane — a tool
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. clip — for paper

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