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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hide · ball · lash · snap · court · fall

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. court — of a king
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. court — for sport
  6. fall — the season
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. fall — to drop
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. ball — a great time
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. ball — a dance
  16. fall — to drop
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. court — of law

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