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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: kid · last · ground · fall · wave · net · dip · snap

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. last — final
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. ground — a position
  6. net — for catching
  7. dip — to sink
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. ground — the earth
  10. last — finally
  11. net — after costs
  12. fall — the season
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. fall — to drop
  15. ground — crushed
  16. fall — to drop
  17. kid — child
  18. net — in sport
  19. last — to go on
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. kid — to tease
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. snap — to click

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