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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: wave · last · prune · stick · snap · face · clip · ball

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. prune — to trim
  6. last — final
  7. face — to point toward
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. ball — a great time
  10. clip — for paper
  11. last — finally
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. last — to go on
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. prune — to trim
  16. clip — a video
  17. face — part of the head
  18. face — to confront
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  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