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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. swing — music
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. swing — in golf
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. sharp — clever
  9. club — for golf
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. club — for dancing
  14. tear — from crying
  15. swing — to play on
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bulb — for light
  22. march — the month
  23. bulb — for light
  24. lash — to lash out

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