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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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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: wound · spell · wax · track · vault · snap · deal · bat

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. spell — letters
  5. snap — to click
  6. vault — a safe
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wax — to grow
  9. spell — a short time
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — to handle
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. track — a path
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. spell — magic
  20. track — a song
  21. bat — the animal
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. track — to keep track
  24. wound — an injury

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