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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. wake — a trail
  3. cap — a hat
  4. hand — help
  5. net — for catching
  6. net — after costs
  7. cap — a lid
  8. net — in sport
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bound — obliged
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. cap — of ice
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. hand — in cards
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. wake — to stop sleeping

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