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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. content — the amount
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. snap — to click
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. game — a match
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. prune — to trim
  11. saw — the tool
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. game — wild animals
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. content — happy
  23. wax — to grow
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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