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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 120 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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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: bowl · pitcher · hand · wax · swing · stock · snap · ball

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. stock — shares
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. swing — to play on
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. stock — goods
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. ball — a dance
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — in cards
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. ball — a great time
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — in golf

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