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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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. 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. lash — to lash out
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. current — electric
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lean — thin
  6. bulb — for light
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — to bend
  12. current — of water
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. current — happening now
  17. clip — a video
  18. 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