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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. craft — boats
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stock — shares
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. row — a line
  16. hand — help
  17. row — to paddle
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. wound — an injury
  21. foot — a measure
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. wound — an injury
  24. stock — goods

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