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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. row — a line
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. race — humankind
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. row — to paddle
  10. date — the fruit
  11. bass — the fish
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bass — low music
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. race — the arms race
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. race — a contest
  21. scale — size or range
  22. scale — in music
  23. hide — to keep secret
  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