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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: snap · hide · hand · wave · pop · bat · face · chest

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chest — of your body
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bat — the animal
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pop — to visit
  10. chest — a box
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. pop — music
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. pop — soda
  16. face — part of the head
  17. face — to point toward
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. chest — of your body
  23. face — to confront
  24. hide — to keep secret

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