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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. mug — a face
  3. file — a line of people
  4. stock — goods
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mug — to rob
  7. snap — to click
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. tube — the underground
  11. file — a tool
  12. mug — a cup
  13. bat — the animal
  14. file — a document
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. tube — a container
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. stock — shares
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. bat — for 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