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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. march — the month
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. hand — in cards
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. last — finally
  12. season — of the year
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. season — in sport
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. snap — to click
  21. last — final
  22. hand — help
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. last — to go on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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