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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 116 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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. race — a contest
  4. mate — a friend
  5. mug — a cup
  6. race — the arms race
  7. race — humankind
  8. spell — letters
  9. mug — a face
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. spell — a short time
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. mine — for digging
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mug — to rob
  18. ball — a great time
  19. content — the amount
  20. mate — a partner
  21. spell — magic
  22. mate — to breed
  23. content — happy
  24. ball — a round shape

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