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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: wound · pound · cue · snap · lash · field · hide · wax

  1. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. wax — to grow
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. field — farmland
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. cue — a signal
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. cue — a hint
  12. field — for sport
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. field — a subject
  17. snap — to click
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cue — for pool
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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