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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.

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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: game · date · bark · content · rock · snap · lash · wave

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — to shout
  5. game — wild animals
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. date — the fruit
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. content — happy
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. game — a match
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. content — the amount
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. rock — a stone
  24. rock — music

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