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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. tear — to rip
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to bend
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. court — for sport
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. bore — to drill
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. wax — to grow
  13. tear — from crying
  14. spell — letters
  15. bore — to tire
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. snap — to click
  20. court — of a king
  21. spell — magic
  22. court — of law
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. spell — a short time

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