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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: chair · saw · cue · snap · wave · march · file · mug

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. march — the month
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. saw — the tool
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. mug — a cup
  8. mug — to rob
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. file — a line of people
  12. march — the month
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cue — for pool
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a tool
  17. chair — a leader
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. cue — a signal
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. saw — the tool
  23. march — music
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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