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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. pop — music
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — to come from
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pop — to visit
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — child
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. hand — help
  21. snap — to click
  22. pop — soda
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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