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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: bowl · foot · arm · snap · sharp · fork · wax · capital

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. sharp — clever
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. capital — money
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. fork — in a road
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. wax — to grow
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. capital — a city

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