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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. firm — a company
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. firm — steady
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. spell — a short time
  8. court — for sport
  9. spell — magic
  10. hand — in cards
  11. firm — decided
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. bat — the animal
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. rule — government
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. rule — a law
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. court — of a king
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. court — of law

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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