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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. face — to point toward
  5. race — humankind
  6. mark — a trace
  7. pound — a weight
  8. mark — a grade
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. rest — what's left
  11. race — a contest
  12. rest — what's left
  13. face — to confront
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. wound — an injury
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. face — part of the head
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. race — the arms race
  21. prune — to trim
  22. rest — a break
  23. wound — an injury
  24. lash — an eyelash

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