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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 116 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. rock — music
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. net — for catching
  9. stock — goods
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — a stone
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. wound — an injury
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. net — in sport
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. stock — shares
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. wound — an injury

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