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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · tear · pitcher · wound · season · snap · lean · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. lean — thin
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wound — an injury
  13. season — in sport
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — to grow
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. tear — to rip
  20. season — of the year
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. lean — to bend
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. tear — from crying

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