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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. tube — a container
  3. can — to be able to
  4. court — of a king
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. swing — to play on
  8. clip — for paper
  9. court — for sport
  10. suit — to fit
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. court — of law
  13. clip — a video
  14. can — a tin
  15. suit — in cards
  16. tube — the underground
  17. swing — music
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. suit — clothes
  22. swing — in golf
  23. clip — to cut
  24. can — a tin

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