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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 120 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. tear — from crying
  3. staff — employees
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — for catching
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. net — in sport
  10. degree — an amount
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — a stick
  13. tear — to rip
  14. degree — from a university
  15. tear — from crying
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. degree — temperature
  24. patient — a sick person

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