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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. present — a gift
  6. club — for dancing
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. club — for golf
  9. mug — to rob
  10. clip — a video
  11. chest — a box
  12. pound — a weight
  13. present — the time now
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mug — a face
  16. chest — of your body
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. chest — of your body
  19. clip — to cut
  20. mug — a cup
  21. present — there
  22. club — a group
  23. clip — for paper
  24. fan — to cool the air

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