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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. spell — magic
  6. net — for catching
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. clip — a video
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. clip — for paper
  15. spell — letters
  16. tear — to rip
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. net — after costs
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. net — in sport
  24. spell — a short time

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