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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: snap · suit · cold · perch · bowl · wax · foot · rash

  1. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. rash — a series
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. suit — to fit
  6. wax — to grow
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. suit — in cards
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. suit — clothes
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. cold — an illness

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