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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: court · mouse · snap · sharp · wake · rock · clip · lash

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wake — a trail
  5. court — for sport
  6. clip — for paper
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. clip — a video
  15. snap — to click
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. sharp — clever
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. rock — music

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