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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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. pit — a hole
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. bank — for money
  5. chest — a box
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. chest — of your body
  10. land — a country
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bank — for money
  15. pit — in a race
  16. snap — to click
  17. chest — of your body
  18. bank — of a river
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. land — ground
  24. land — to come down

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