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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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Word bank
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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 · club · fan · wave · bark · arm · field · snap

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. field — a subject
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bark — to shout
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — farmland
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wave — with your hand

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