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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: snap · spring · wax · tear · bark · temple · mug · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — of water
  5. mug — a face
  6. wax — to grow
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. tear — from crying
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a cup
  16. bark — to shout
  17. tear — to rip
  18. snap — to click
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spring — a coil
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. tear — from crying

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