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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. pop — to visit
  8. wake — a trail
  9. face — to point toward
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. pop — music
  13. clip — a video
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. rash — hasty
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. root — of a plant
  21. rash — a series
  22. pop — soda
  23. face — to confront
  24. lash — an eyelash

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