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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: tear · pit · wax · perch · snap · bat · cue · craft

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. craft — a skill
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pit — in a race
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cue — a hint
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. cue — for pool
  18. snap — to click
  19. pit — a hole
  20. perch — the fish
  21. craft — boats
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bat — the animal
  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