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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 · net · game · ball · wave · wound · hand · arm

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. game — a match
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. net — after costs
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. ball — a great time
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. hand — in cards
  14. ball — a dance
  15. game — wild animals
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. net — in sport
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. snap — to click
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. net — for catching

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