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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: degree · snap · wave · bark · tube · racket · straw · wax

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. snap — to click
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. wax — to grow
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. tube — a container
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. bark — to shout
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tube — the underground
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. degree — from a university
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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