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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: fall · sharp · snap · bowl · kick · clip · wax · ruler

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. kick — in football
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. snap — to click
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. clip — for paper
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. sharp — clever
  17. clip — a video
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — to drop
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. clip — to cut

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