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

Word bank: snap · sharp · kid · track · straw · bowl · bear · lie

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  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. snap — to click
  2. kid — child
  3. bear — the animal
  4. track — a song
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. track — to keep track
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. sharp — clever
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. lie — to recline
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. track — a path
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. kid — to tease
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  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