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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 116 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: stick · snap · straw · coach · racket · wax · bark · wake

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. bark — to shout
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. wax — to grow
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. snap — to click
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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