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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bass — low music
  3. fall — the season
  4. mate — to breed
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. bass — the fish
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. kid — child
  16. fall — to drop
  17. scale — in music
  18. deal — to handle
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mate — a friend
  22. mate — a partner
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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