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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. snap — to click
  6. rest — what's left
  7. press — a publisher
  8. field — farmland
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. hand — help
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. rest — a break
  13. hand — in cards
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. press — newspapers
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. field — for sport
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. rest — what's left
  22. field — a subject
  23. press — to push
  24. jam — in traffic

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