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

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cell — in biology
  6. band — a ring
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. pound — a weight
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. cell — a phone
  13. band — a music group
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fine — high quality
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fine — all right
  18. pound — for dogs

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