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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. staff — employees
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a friend
  7. stock — shares
  8. bass — low music
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. bass — the fish
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. mate — a partner
  16. stock — goods
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. staff — a stick
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. staff — employees
  24. lash — an eyelash

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