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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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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: lie · temple · wake · bear · club · straw · kid · snap

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. club — for dancing
  4. kid — child
  5. snap — to click
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. kid — to tease
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. club — for golf
  14. lie — to recline
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wake — a trail
  18. club — a group
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bear — the animal
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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