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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. rule — a law
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. rule — government
  7. scale — in music
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. scale — size or range
  11. rush — hurry
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. rash — hasty
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rash — a series
  24. straw — dry grass

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