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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: chest · wave · firm · fan · cap · kick · snap · hide

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. firm — decided
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. snap — to click
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. firm — steady
  9. cap — a hat
  10. chest — of your body
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. cap — of ice
  17. firm — a company
  18. chest — a box
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. kick — in football
  23. cap — a lid
  24. hide — animal skin

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