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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: net · clip · wax · face · fine · date · snap · pop

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. face — to point toward
  3. pop — soda
  4. clip — a video
  5. wax — to grow
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to click
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. net — in sport
  11. fine — high quality
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. pop — music
  14. clip — for paper
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. pop — to visit
  17. clip — to cut
  18. net — after costs
  19. fine — all right
  20. date — the fruit
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. face — to confront
  23. face — part of the head
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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