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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. tear — to rip
  5. fork — in a road
  6. tear — from crying
  7. stock — shares
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. row — a line
  15. row — to paddle
  16. hand — help
  17. stock — goods
  18. hand — in cards

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