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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. pit — in a race
  5. last — finally
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pit — a hole
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. fine — all right
  16. fine — high quality
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. last — final
  23. last — to go on
  24. nail — for a hammer

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