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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 120 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: foot · bore · wax · row · bat · arm · snap · kick

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. row — a line
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. snap — to click
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wax — to grow
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bore — to drill
  21. foot — a measure
  22. kick — in football
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bore — to tire

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