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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. snap — to click
  3. rest — a break
  4. sharp — clever
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. rest — what's left
  7. can — a tin
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. rest — what's left
  10. present — the time now
  11. file — a document
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. present — a gift
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. wax — to grow

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