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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: wax · snap · lean · tear · track · sharp · straw · toast

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. sharp — clever
  3. tear — to rip
  4. snap — to click
  5. track — a song
  6. track — to keep track
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. lean — to bend
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. toast — bread
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. lean — thin
  23. wax — to grow
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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